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When it comes to RAW's participants for Money in the Bank, the field is set. Drew McIntyre claimed the last spot by defeating AJ Styles and Riddle in a "last chance match" on the latest episode of RAW.
Randy Orton was supposed to compete in the main event but was absent from RAW. Riddle fought to help his tag team partner earn a spot in the upcoming Money in the Bank ladder match, but was unsuccessful.
SmackDown technically only has one person - Big E - who has qualified for Money in the Bank. This week's show will see Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn battle for a spot in a Last Man Standing fight. That will still leave two spots for performers from the blue brand.
Presumably, the likes of Baron Corbin, Shinsuke Nakamura, Seth Rollins and Cesaro will compete in qualifiers in the coming weeks. When it comes to female combatants, however, SmackDown is severely lacking in women to fill spots.
There are currently six active women on the blue brand - Bianca Belair, Bayley, Carmella, Liv Morgan, Nattie, and Tamina. The latter two women are WWE Women's Tag Team Champs and shouldn't be in the match.
Belair won't compete in Money in the Bank due to being the SmackDown Women's Champion. Bayley may or may not be a part of the match since she pinned Belair last week.
Some would mention Sasha Banks, but she has been absent from WWE since losing her title at WrestleMania. Could she be a surprise entrant in this year's Money in the Bank match?
WWE is in a tough spot for the women's contest due to the disparity between the rosters of RAW and SmackDown. RAW still has Shayna Baszler, Nia Jax and Doudrop who failed to qualify for the match. Mia Yim could be a possibility but she has been away from WWE since RETRIBUTION disbanded.
Had any of those women been put on SmackDown TV, the problem wouldn't be as big of a deal. But due to several cuts to the rosters over the last few months, SmackDown desperately needs some returns and NXT stars to shore up the numbers.
Edge won't be a surprise participant either due to attacking Roman Reigns on SmackDown last week. So which surprise names could earn spots in the Money in the Bank matches? Here are five possibilities.
#5 A WWE Superstar could 'replace' an injured Money in the Bank participant
When the qualifying matches were announced for a recent RAW, several unhappy performers confronted Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville. They wanted to know why they didn't get a chance to qualify for the match.
During that conversation, Jinder Mahal brought up what would happen if someone with a spot was injured. RAW Superstars competed in a battle royal to determine the third participant in the last chance triple threat bout on the latest RAW.
Riddle won, but Damien Priest, Cedric Alexander, Mahal, and Jeff Hardy all had chances to make the match.
With all of RAW's spots filled, the final few weeks before Money in the Bank could see someone taken out due to an attack. It happened when Sami Zayn was injured in 2019.
Brock Lesnar took Zayn's spot in 2019 and shocked everyone by showing up at the last minute to win the match. Apollo Crews was also replaced at last year's PPV.
It won't be a surprise if the field that has been determined isn't the same field that competes in the match. Someone like Mahal or Lesnar could take the spot if someone is injured.
#4 Sasha Banks could return at Money in the Bank
Sasha Banks' return at Money in the Bank lines up with recent reports stating that she's coming back on the July 16th episode of SmackDown. The Boss took some time off after WrestleMania following her loss to Bianca Belair. She did the same thing after she and Bayley lost the WWE Women's Tag Team titles.
She's been gone for two and a half months and SmackDown needs her badly. It isn't apparent if she'll return as a heel or a face. With Bayley and Carmella acting as top heels, however, it seems like Banks could return to being a face.
Since the women have only been competing for the briefcase at Money in the Bank for a few years, there have only been a few winners. Mella, Alexa Bliss, Bayley, and Asuka are the only winners of the match. Asuka's win turned into a run with the RAW Women's title.
The Boss has been involved in Money in the Bank matches before but obviously hasn't won. Charlotte Flair will likely win the RAW Women's title before SummerSlam. Belair is still the Champ on SmackDown, so could the Boss shore up the numbers and haul down the briefcase?
Stephanie McMahon also promised many surprises once the WWE Universe was back at full capacity for WWE events. Superstar returns will be one way to surprise the fans, and one of the returning stars winning a title/briefcase will be another shock.
With the Draft taking place after SummerSlam, it doesn't really matter which brand the Money in the Bank winners call home. They can easily be drafted to a different brand following the Biggest Party of the Summer.
One thing the WWE has done with the female winners of Money in the Bank is to have those winners cash in on the same night as the PPV. Both Alexa Bliss and Bayley won the briefcase and a Championship on the same night.
Banks is one of the biggest stars in the women's division, so she might do just that at this year's Money in the Bank. It would certainly be a welcome surprise to the WWE Universe.
#3 Daniel Bryan is unsigned but could pop up at Money in the Bank
Daniel Bryan is a former Money in the Bank winner. He won his briefcase over a decade ago and won his first WWE title because of the cash-in. Bryan was forced to leave Friday Night SmackDown after he was defeated by Roman Reigns on an episode of the blue brand following WrestleMania. His contract had expired around the same time, making Bryan a free agent.
Bryan once said in an interview that he wanted to wind down his full-time status as a pro wrestler and mainly do part-time work going forward. Any promotion would instantly improve by signing the former WWE Champion, but Bryan made his mark in WWE.
For that reason, it seems like he could work out a part-time deal if he signs a new contract with WWE. WWE has reportedly been pushing very hard to re-sign Bryan to a new contract, but he might also want to work for New Japan. Would WWE also allow him to work for a promotion like NJPW if he wants to?
Outside of a Big E push to the top or having Rollins face Reigns, a returning Daniel Bryan could also pose a threat. A return at Money in the Bank would also space out any surprises that are in store for SummerSlam.
Roman Reigns has almost cleared SmackDown of all potential challengers to his throne. Edge made a surprise return on last week's show to stake his claim to the Universal Championship. He never had his one-on-one match with Reigns but will get it at Money in the Bank.
While the agreement Bryan made with Reigns was before his current deal expired, Bryan could win the briefcase and go after the WWE Championship. He is still one of the most beloved Superstars in wrestling and his return would be a pleasant one at Money in the Bank.
WWE could also work around his banishment from SmackDown by having him join RAW or NXT. There are several ways that Bryan could triumphantly return to the WWE and one of those ways could be by participating at Money in the Bank.
#2 Sonya Deville's return to the ring could be at Money in the Bank
Money in the Bank is a match that should create future Superstars. Sonya Deville was on her way to becoming one before last summer. She's instead been an on-screen authority figure since early 2021. Her last match for WWE was a Loser Leaves WWE fight with Mandy Rose at last year's SummerSlam.
The women of Fire & Desire have gone in different directions since disbanding. Rose has been a part of a tag team with Dana Brooke. The duo have challenged for titles a few times but have been unsuccessful. Deville has held some power over Superstars and matches in her new role.
She has been non-committal regarding her eventual return to the ring but has stated that she is a fighter first. Could she nab one of the SmackDown spots in the Women's Money in the Bank match?
Deville was on fire during her angle with Rose at last year's WrestleMania. She came out on the losing end but was doing better work than Rose in promos. Deville was really coming into her own and it looked as if she was going to get a push up the card.
Unfortunately, some factors outside of WWE greatly altered the plans for Deville. She took time off from the ring immediately following last year's SummerSlam but popped up before the Royal Rumble earlier this year.
Some thought that she could return as a surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble but she did not. It's only a matter of time before she gets back into a WWE ring, and Money in the Bank would be a perfect place for her return.
As mentioned several times before, SmackDown desperately needs to replenish the ranks in its women's division. The most obvious and easiest addition would be for Deville to get back into the ring as soon as Money in the Bank.
#1 Could Keith Lee return at Money in the Bank?
WWE really needs to nail the men's winner of this year's Money in the Bank. The last three men to win the briefcase were Braun Strowman, Lesnar, and Otis. Strowman "announced" his intention to cash in at that year's Hell in a Cell and failed to win.
Lesnar showed up at the end of 2019's match to push Ali off the ladder. He pulled down the briefcase and cashed in on Seth Rollins at Extreme Rules. Lesnar would then drop the title back to Rollins at that year's SummerSlam.
Last year's Money in the Bank didn't produce a future WWE Champion with Otis. The big man didn't climb the ladder but had the briefcase literally fall into his hands. With that, he was the 2020 Mr. Money in the Bank.
It didn't take long, however, to see that it was a huge mistake. There were better options for winning in the briefcase with Brian, Styles, Aleister Black, and Baron Corbin also in the match.
Otis would lose the contract to the Miz in October 2020. Miz would then cash in on Drew McIntyre before 'Mania but lose the belt to Lashley. In short, WWE must pick someone credible and new to be this year's Mr. Money in the Bank.
While it would be exciting if someone like Big E or Riddle won, having Keith Lee return to win would be an everlasting moment. If he is medically cleared, it would be a fantastic opportunity for the Limitless One to make an immediate impact.
Lee was in the middle of a program around the United States Championship before the Show of Shows. He was slated to face both Riddle and Lashley for the title but was mysteriously taken out of the match. Lee hasn't been seen in WWE since.
Reports around 'Mania suggested that he wasn't medically cleared. Lee also updated his fans about a month ago, stating that he wanted to "do something educational and inspiring" to explain his journey since January of this year.
Whenever he returns, it will surely be to a raucous response. Lee connects with the WWE Universe like few other Superstars. He also has all the makings of a future WWE Champion.
Lee returning at Money in the Bank would be a huge moment for both him and the WWE. Will it be one of the most memorable moments of 2021?
