WWE Reportedly Making Changes To Raw And SmackDown Announce Teams

There will be a change with the WWE Raw and SmackDown announce teams to begin 2026.

WWE superstars are currently on a well-deserved break for the Christmas holiday, as Monday’s episode of Raw and Friday’s edition of SmackDown were both pre-taped editions.

However, live shows will resume starting with next week’s Raw, which features a couple of championship matches.

Stephanie Vaquer is set to defend the Women’s World Championship against Nikki Bella and Raquel Rodriguez, while The Usos will face off with AJ Styles and Dragon Lee for the World Tag Team Championships.

But it appears that WWE will be shifting its commentary teams after the holiday season.

WWE broadcast team changes

Sportscaster Joe Tessitore | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

According to PWInsider, the current SmackDown duo of Michael Cole and Corey Graves will return to Raw starting with the January 5 episode at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, while the current Raw announce group of Joe Tessitore and Wade Barrett will move back to SmackDown.

This is a familiar change for WWE fans, as the company swapped Tessitore from SmackDown to Raw back in September to accommodate his college football announcing work with ESPN. The two commentary teams swapped brands for the most recent editions of the shows due to the pre-taped format.

Speaking of format, SmackDown is set to return to a three-hour broadcast starting with the January 2 episode in Buffalo.

A significant return for the new WWE Raw announce team

The return to the red brand for Cole and Graves will be quite an occasion, with WWE loading up its one-year Netflix anniversary show with several huge matches.

CM Punk and Bron Breakker will clash for the World Heavyweight Championship in what could be a career-defining moment for the 28-year-old if he can dethrone the champion.

Meanwhile, Becky Lynch looks to regain the Women’s Intercontinental Championship from Maxxine Dupri, with the latter aiming for yet another win over ‘The Man.’

Also announced for the Raw on Netflix anniversary is Rhea Ripley and IYO SKY teaming up to challenge Asuka and Kairi Sane for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships.

Having someone with Cole’s experience on the call for such a star-studded edition of Raw is understandable for WWE, as he and Graves boast the most experience of the two announcing duos.

But Tessitore and Barrett should have plenty of interesting action back on the blue brand, especially with the ongoing rivalry between Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre.

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