WWE Speed
WWE Speed | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Created by | Paul "Triple H" Levesque |
Presented by | Corey Graves |
Starring | |
Opening theme | "Conquered It All" by def rebel (from WWE Music Group) |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 61 |
Production | |
Executive producer | Paul "Triple H" Levesque |
Producer | Pete Dunne[1] |
Camera setup | Multi-camera setup |
Running time | 3–5 minutes |
Original release | |
Network | X |
Release | April 3, 2024 present | –
Related | |
WWE Speed is an American professional wrestling web series produced by WWE. Premiering on April 3, 2024, the series features wrestlers from WWE's Raw, SmackDown, and NXT brands competing in matches with three-minute time limits.
Speed premiered as part of a two-year deal with X (formerly Twitter), with new matches posted exclusively to WWE's account on Wednesdays. The WWE Speed Championship and Women's Speed Championship are contested in matches that air during special Friday editions of the series, which have an extended, five-minute time limit. Matches for WWE Speed are generally taped prior to the live broadcasts of Raw and SmackDown.
History
[edit]Prior to the December 15, 2023 broadcast of WWE SmackDown, WWE piloted matches with five-minute time limits as dark matches.[2] On February 6, 2024, it was reported that WWE had filed trademark applications for the title "WWE Speed";[2] on February 8 during the WrestleMania XL Kickoff press conference, WWE officially announced a partnership with X (formerly Twitter) to introduce WWE Speed, which would stream weekly on the social media platform.[3] The deal was confirmed for two years. It was also revealed that the matches would be filmed specifically for the program and not be repurposed from WWE's other programs, and that it would feature wrestlers from all three of WWE's brands: Raw, SmackDown, and NXT.[4]
On March 27, WWE commentator Corey Graves announced that Speed would premiere on Wednesday, April 3, but matches would instead be three minutes in length. Also announced was a tournament to crown the inaugural WWE Speed Champion for men.[5] The debut episode, which was uploaded at 12 p.m. ET, saw Ricochet defeat Dragon Lee. Roughly 30 minutes later, WWE uploaded a second episode in which Bronson Reed defeated Cedric Alexander. Graves served as the sole commentator for the episodes.[6] On May 1, 2024, WWE Chief Content Officer Paul "Triple H" Levesque confirmed that the program would also eventually feature women's matches;[7] this led to the announcement of the WWE Women's Speed Championship on August 9, 2024, which began on September 4, 2024.[8]
While the program typically airs on Wednesdays, a special Friday airing occurred on May 3, 2024. This episode, which was the seventh episode overall, saw Ricochet defeat Johnny Gargano to become the inaugural Speed Champion. This episode also confirmed that championship matches would air on Fridays and would have a five-minute time limit instead of the regular three.[9][10] During the Speed tapings on October 4, 2024 (aired October 9), Candice LeRae defeated Iyo Sky to become the inaugural Women's Speed Champion.[11][12]
Champions
[edit]The colors and symbols indicate the home brand of the champions.
† | Raw | ‡ | SmackDown | § | NXT | ∞ | Unaffiliated |
Championship | Current champion(s) | Reign | Date won | Days held |
Days rec. |
Location | Notes | Ref. | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
WWE Speed Championship | ![]() |
Dragon Lee † | 1 | November 15, 2024 | 156 | 151 | Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Defeated Andrade on Speed. WWE recognizes Lee's reign as beginning on November 20, 2024, when the match aired on tape delay. |
[13][14] |
WWE Women's Speed Championship | ![]() |
Sol Ruca § | 1 | April 11, 2025 | 9 | 4 | Seattle, Washington | Defeated Candice LeRae on Speed. WWE recognizes Ruca's reign as beginning on April 16, 2025, when the match aired on tape delay. |
[15] |
On-air personalities
[edit]Commentators
[edit]Commentators | Tenure |
---|---|
Corey Graves | January 22, 2025 | – present
Ring announcers
[edit]Ring announcers | Date started |
---|---|
Alicia Taylor | October 21, 2024 | – present
References
[edit]- ^ Sapp, Sean Ross (March 31, 2024). "Pete Dunne Produced Recent WWE Speed Matches". Fightful. Archived from the original on April 23, 2024. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
- ^ a b Lee, Joseph (February 8, 2024). "WWE Files Trademarks For 'WWE Speed' and 'Je'Von Evans'". 411Mania. Archived from the original on March 28, 2024. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
- ^ Defelice, Robert (February 8, 2024). "WWE Speed To Air On X (Twitter) Beginning In Spring 2024". Fightful. Archived from the original on March 28, 2024. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
- ^ Defelice, Robert (February 9, 2024). "Report: WWE Inks 2-Year Deal With X (Twitter) To Bring 'WWE Speed' To Platform". Fightful. Archived from the original on April 4, 2024. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
- ^ Rose, Bryan (March 27, 2024). "WWE Speed premiere date revealed, tournament will crown champion". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Archived from the original on March 28, 2024. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
- ^ Defelice, Robert (April 3, 2024). "Ricochet And Bronson Reed Advance In WWE Speed Championship Tournament, JD McDonagh vs. Axiom Set For 4/10 WWE Speed". Fightful. Archived from the original on April 3, 2024. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
- ^ Lowson, Thomas (May 1, 2024). "WWE Speed Will Feature Women's Division Matches, Triple H Confirms". SE Scoops. Archived from the original on May 2, 2024. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
- ^ "IYO SKY Advances In WWE Speed Women's Championship Tournament". Yahoo Entertainment. 2024-09-04. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
- ^ Lee, Joseph (May 3, 2024). "Ricochet Becomes First-Ever WWE Speed Champion, Special Friday Episode Airs". 411Mania. Archived from the original on May 3, 2024. Retrieved May 3, 2024.
- ^ Lowson, Thomas (May 3, 2024). "Ricochet Celebrates WWE Speed Title Win After Becoming First-Ever Champion". SE Scoops. Archived from the original on May 3, 2024. Retrieved May 3, 2024.
- ^ Lambert, Jeremy (October 4, 2024). "Spoiler: Inaugural WWE Women's Speed Champion Crowned". Fightful. Retrieved October 5, 2024.
- ^ Currier, Joseph (October 9, 2024). "Candice LeRae crowned first WWE Speed Women's Champion". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
- ^ Martínez, Sebastián (November 15, 2024). "WWE Speed Spoilers November 15, 2024". Solowrestling.com (in Spanish). Retrieved November 15, 2024.
- ^ Powell, Jason (November 20, 2024). "WWE Speed – Andrade vs. Dragon Lee for the WWE Speed Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
- ^ Liam (April 11, 2025). "WWE Title Change Confirmed". WrestleTalk. Retrieved April 11, 2025.