Tuesday’s WWE Draft saw Brock Lesnar drafted to RAW in the second round (#8 overall), but original plans called for The Beast to be the first overall pick. The idea was to draft Lesnar at #1 to capitalize on his win over Mark Hunt at UFC 200 and the mainstream publicity that came along with it.
Then news broke that Lesnar had been notified of a potential USADA violation. Earlier this week, USADA announced that Lesnar failed a second drug test, conducted the day of his UFC 200 fight. WWE “no sold” the news, continued to promote his match against Randy Orton at SummerSlam and still included him in the draft.
Lesnar being drafted at #8 instead of #1 did not change any major plans in terms of which Superstars would go to RAW or SmackDown. Had Lesnar gone at #1, WWE Champion Dean Ambrose would have been #2 (SmackDown), followed by Seth Rollins (RAW) and John Cena (SmackDown).
Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter
