2008 WWE Draft Lottery The 2008 World Wrestling Entertainment ( WWE ) Draft Lottery took place at the AT & T Center in San Antonio , Texas on June 23 , 2008 . The Draft took place live for three hours on WWE ' s flagship program , " Raw " on USA Network . For the second consecutive year , the Draft took place among WWE ' s three brands : Raw , SmackDown , and ECW . Every WWE employee , diva , announcer , commentator , and general manager were eligible to be drafted . Similar to the 2007 WWE Draft , superstars from each brand competed in matches to win a random draft pick for their brand . Draft picks were kayfabe selected at random via a computer that was shown on the " Raw " titantron . Like the previous year , a supplemental draft took place on June 25 , where draft selections were randomly conducted . The Draft featured the Raw brand randomly drafting ECW Champion , Kane , from the ECW brand . It also featured the ECW brand drafting WWE United States Champion , Matt Hardy , from the SmackDown brand . The final selection in the draft was conducted by the SmackDown brand , and they drafted WWE Champion , Triple H , from the Raw brand . As per pre - Draft stipulations , all the three champions brought their respective titles to the brand to which they were drafted . Background . The Draft was announced by WWE Chairman Vince McMahon on the May 26 , 2008 episode of " Raw " . During the announcement , he stated that every WWE Superstar , Diva , and commentator from all three brands , Raw , ECW , and SmackDown , were eligible to be drafted . On the June 16 episode of " Raw " , McMahon announced that his " McMahon ' s Million Dollar Mania " contest would take place on the same night as the WWE Draft . During the contest , McMahon gave away one million dollars to WWE fans . McMahon telephoned fans , who had registered for the contest , at their homes and asked them for a password , which was revealed at the opening of the " Raw " broadcast . If their answer was correct , he awarded the fan a portion of one million dollars . On June 24 , WWE announced on its website , that a supplemental draft would take place on June 25 at noon ET . The supplemental draft , like the previous year , was conducted randomly , with each brand receiving random draft selections . Superstars affected by the televised draft were exempt from the supplemental draft . Because professional wrestling is scripted , outcomes are usually predetermined . Unlike years past , during this draft , many employees in WWE were not told whether they were scripted to change brands . Aside from the " Million Dollar Mania " contest , the Draft was announced to help increase the television ratings of " Raw " , which had been declining since WrestleMania XXIV . Though the Draft helps increase ratings , it is also used as a way to refreshen the rosters and create new storylines . Superstar selections . There were 28 selections conducted in the draft overall . 11 selections were conducted on television , while 17 selections occurred during the supplemental draft . The Raw brand earned five televised selections through their representatives winning five different matches , while they received six supplemental selections . In total , the Raw brand drafted 11 employees : five on television and six through the supplemental draft . The SmackDown brand earned five television selections through their representatives winning five different matches , while they received seven supplemental selections . In total , the SmackDown brand drafted 12 employees : five on television and seven through the supplemental draft . The ECW brand earned one televised selection through their representative winning one match , while they received four supplemental selections . In total , the ECW brand drafted five employees : one on television and four through the supplemental draft . The 28 included two commentators , two Divas , and 24 male wrestlers ( two inactive wrestlers and 22 active wrestlers ) . Televised draft . Matches . During the program , representatives from the Raw , ECW , and SmackDown brands were involved in matches that determined which brand received a draft pick . Overall , there were 9 matches , in which Raw won four , ECW won one , SmackDown won three , and one resulted in no winner . Aftermath . Jim Ross , one of the draftees , was unaware he was to switch brands during the Draft . After the Draft , Ross was on the verge of quitting his job as a commentator for WWE , as he was angry at the fact he was leaving the Raw brand , where he had commentated for over ten years . Ross stated on his official blog that he was about to quit WWE , but he decided to continue to work for the company and make the best of working on SmackDown . After the Draft , the ECW brand was left without a world championship , after the ECW Champion , Kane , was drafted to Raw . As a result of pre - draft stipulations , champions took their championships to their new brand and made them property of that brand . SmackDown , however , lost their secondary championship , after United States Champion , Matt Hardy , was drafted to the ECW brand , in the process making the title ECW property . SmackDown , however , gained another top - tier championship when WWE Champion , Triple H , was drafted to SmackDown , in the process making the title SmackDown exclusive . The result of Triple H being drafted was the loss of the Raw brand ' s world championship . After the draft , the ECW Championship moved back to ECW when Mark Henry defeated Kane and The Big Show in a Triple Threat match at Night of Champions , leaving Raw without any top - tier championships . On the June 30 , 2008 episode of " Raw " , the Raw brand regained a world championship , after Raw superstar and Money in the Bank contract holder , CM Punk , cashed in his contract and defeated the World Heavyweight Champion , Edge , who was a SmackDown superstar . Lastly , the United States Championship returned to SmackDown after Shelton Benjamin defeated Matt Hardy at The Great American Bash pay - per - view on July 20 . Chuck Palumbo was also later released from the WWE prior to his first appearance on " Raw " after being drafted . The Draft helped increased the television ratings of " Raw " , which was one of the main purposes of the Draft . The television rating for the three hours was 3 . 40 TVR , as it earned 2 . 78 TVR for the first hour , 3 . 46 TVR for the second hour , and 3 . 95 TVR for the final hour . In its regular time slot , the show would have garnered a 3 . 7 rating . Both ratings were higher than the week ' s previous rating of a 3 . 3 TVR .