Here’s Why WWE Nixed Raw TV-14 Plans

Published: Aug 28, 2022 by Sanchez Taylor | Last Updated: Aug 28, 2022 by Sanchez Taylor

Sanchez has over six years of pro-wrestling news writing experience, covering the biggest news stories in WWE, NXT, AEW, TNA Wrestling and more. He has personally interviewed a number of top stars, producing exclusive content with the likes of AEW's Swerve Strickland and WWE's Nick Aldis.

Here’s why WWE has nixed plans for Raw to move to a TV-14 rating.

Andrew Zarian had previously reported that the show was set to become a TV-14 product with the July 18 episode.

A lot has happened since then, with Vince McMahon retiring, Triple H taking over creative, and Stephanie McMahon & Nick Khan becoming co-CEOs. An update from PWInsider on August 25 revealed that WWE doesn’t have any current plans for Raw to change rating.

Per Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio, this is because WWE doesn’t want to upset advertisers so early into the new regime.

Confirming that there were at one point plans for the change, Meltzer noted:

“That’s not gonna happen now. Yeah, that was one of the new things. Andrew (Zarian) knows the whole story. Absolutely, there were memos and everything. It was planned.

“I think that’s the new regime and that could be Stephanie instead of Vince. Vince maybe was considering it. Stephanie’s thing is let’s not make Mattel unhappy and we don’t need it (the TV-14 rating). You know what I mean? And they don’t.”

WWE Raw viewership has been up since Vince McMahon’s departure, with every episode following the management change so far drawing over 1.9 million fans. The August 22 show drew 2.005 million, with a 0.55 rating in the 18-49 demographic.

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Transcription via WrestlingNews.co

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