The Money in the Bank ladder match is a career changer for many stars. Look at guys like Edge, Daniel Bryan, CM Punk and Seth Rollins, all guys who were able to win their first World Titles by using the contract. In Edge's case, it solidified his main event status in WWE and got him into the Hall of Fame. Not everyone who cashes in reaches this height of fame though. Guys like Jack Swagger or Damien Sandow didn't do much with the briefcase. Swagger did become World Champion but it failed and Sandow was beaten clean while cashing in his contract. I said all this to set up this next post.
I always re-watch the MITB matches ever year around this time, just so I can prepare myself for the match. As I watch them, I always find myself thinking, what if? What if instead of the person who won getting the briefcase, someone else did instead? This post is all about that.
1. Wrestlemania 26 - Jack Swagger over Drew McIntyre?
Heading into Wrestlemania 26, Jack Swagger was not one of my favorites at all. This ladder match had 10 guys in it, the biggest one in history. There were a couple of other guys who could have won it instead. Ladder match veterans Christian and Matt Hardy were both in the match. Either one could have used to win to finally get out of the shadow of their more successful tag team partners. Christian was very close to winning too. Out of all the guys though, it should have been Drew McIntyre who won that night. McIntyre's whole thing was that he was hand picked by Vince McMahon himself. He was the chosen one, the guy who Vince wanted to succeed next in WWE. He didn't succeed though. Yeah, he won the IC Title and had a pointless tag team title reign with Cody Rhodes but that was it. No World Title opportunities, no main events, nothing. In my eyes, WWE had chosen Jack Swagger over Drew and in the long run, it turned out to be a bad move. Swagger held the title for two months before losing it and then hasn't been the same since. He got a bit of resurgence in 2011 but still, nothing. Looking back at it, it really should have been McIntyre as the winner. Hey, who knows who would be TNA Champion now had they did this?
2. Money in the Bank 2011 - Daniel Bryan's Moment
Again, if you would have asked me who was going to win this MITB match, Daniel Bryan wasn't in the realm of possibility. At this time, the guys from ROH or anywhere else weren't as sought out like they are now. I think Bryan's win was mostly due to Punk's uprising and thanks to it, Bryan's career flourished and it definitely started here. Bryan's MITB win made him World Champion, which brought about the Yes chants and the rest is history. What if Bryan didn't win here? This MITB match was filled with first timers like Heath Slater, Justin Gabriel and Sin Cara. Granted, none of those guys stood a chance. Kane and Sheamus were in it as well but Kane won last year and Sheamus didn't seem like a likely winner just yet. You know which two guys could have won? Cody Rhodes and Wade Barrett. It's still baffling to me why they didn't pull the trigger on either but these were the two favorites for me when the match came around. Barrett had always been a big name player since his Nexus days so holding onto the briefcase made sense. Cody Rhodes had been impressing everyone with his UnDashing gimmick and with the briefcase, WWE could have built more upon him. Neither guy won though and this is one of the ones on this list where it's not the worst decision. Bryan's rise started here so maybe Rhodes or Barrett winning wouldn't have been best but still, it was a tough decision.
3. Money in the Bank 2012 - Ziggler or Rhodes?
MITB 2012 was down to two rising stars in WWE. Dolph Ziggler was regarded as one of the best in ring workers at the time, consistently putting on great matches with just about anyone. He had World Title matches in the past and was even World Champion for about 10 minutes but Ziggler never had his chance to shine on the big stage. Cody Rhodes continued to rise. After winning the IC Title and losing the UnDashing gimmick, Rhodes continued to look impressive in his feuds, feuding with former World Champions Big Show, Randy Orton and Big Show during his time. WWE had a tough choice; either give the briefcase to the best worker who had already been in the main event picture or one of their evolving talents who didn't have a chance at all. In the end, they gave it to Ziggler, who had a great moment on the Raw following Wrestlemania 29. That could have been Rhodes and it should have been Rhodes. I believe in giving the MITB to guys who never won the title. Granted, guys like Orton and Sheamus, who were in ruts, can use the briefcase to revitalize their careers but when looking at their resumes, Rhodes deserved it just a bit more. It could have easily made him the top guy on Smackdown and kept him in the company longer. Like with Bryan, it's a hard choice but it really should have been Rhodes.
4. Money in the Bank 2013 - Sandow, really?
The World Heavyweight Championship MITB match is what the match is all about. It's about giving opportunity to guys who never would have gotten a chance. This match featured 6 guys who never won the World Title and one guy who actually won MITB before and became champion but when down following that. Look at this talent, Dean Ambrose, Wade Barrett, Cesaro, Jack Swagger, Fandango, Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow. Youth wise, this was the best MITB ever. This is a whole new era on its own. The other great thing was that there was no favorite to win the match either. Literally any one of these stars could have won the match. In the end though, it was Damien Sandow who turned on his partner and won the briefcase. I was indifferent with this decision from the start but seeing the track record of the past MITB winners, I waited until they actually would give Sandow the title to reserve my full judgment. That didn't happen as Sandow would try to cash in on a vulnerable John Cena. That was dumb. Cena would defeat Sandow and made him the first star to lose cleanly while cashing in the contract. When I look back at that, Sandow should not have won the match. I'm obviously bias towards Rhodes and Barrett, mainly because they're two of my favorites and they're gone now, but really, either one of those two should have won. Dean Ambrose was another guy who would have flourished in the role and it would have been a nice story for breaking up The Shield. It's just bizarre to me why they chose Sandow over both Rhodes and Barrett though, as they both had been great mid card stars who could've done much more given the opportunity. I mean, Barrettt main evented 5 PPVs in his rookie year. Why didn't the guy become Mr. MITB? Cody is a second generation star. It's such a shame that even though WWE claims they respect Dusty Rhodes but yet they don't respect the talent that his son obviously has. Sandow should NOT have won the briefcase over guys like Amborse, Rhodes and Barrett. Point blank PERIOD. It's a slap in the face and look what it got them. The winner and their two rising stars all were let go this year and they really could have been the next era of stars all by themselves.
As we head into Sunday's event (predictions are DEFINITELY coming) with two former World Champions, two former NXT Champions and two former US Champions, I hope the right move is made. The right move being that neither Jericho or Del Rio win, mainly because they've both won World Titles before. Let it come down to Cesaro, Zayn, Ambrose and the obvious favorite, Kevin Owens. I think Ambrose winning is too obvious, especially seeing how they teased it on Raw. I think a Shield Triple Threat is going to happen but let it happen naturally, no need to waste MITB for it.
Just a short post but it really makes you wonder. Look at how many times Cody Rhodes had to become World Champion. If only the powers at be had more faith in him then they really could have had a star on their hands. No pun intended.
Stay tuned for my Wrestlemania 33, I'm sorry, Money in the Bank 2016 predictions. Also, my Top 50 Favorite Titles Changes will conclude by the end of the month. Definitely have to get it done before Star Ocean and Zero Time Dilemma take over my life.
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