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The 2020 Money in the Bank was a unique pay-per-view, to say the least. It was the shortest WWE main roster pay-per-view in years. It was filled with memorable World Title matches, lots of title defenses and the strangest Money in the Bank matches you will ever see.
As I am still trying to figure out what happened to Aleister Black and Rey Mysterio after being thrown out of the ring by King Corbin, I will present my list of the top five most surprising moments of WWE Money in the Bank 2020:
#5 The ending of WWE Universal Championship match between Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman
I like the only people who have been in the audience since the pandemic began are Bray Wyatt’s puppets. They are the true fans of the WWE these days.
The Universal Championship was a unique match. Having Bray Wyatt wrestle, instead of The Fiend, was a very surprising choice before the pay-per-view. The fact that their pay-per-view match went for nearly ten minutes after including the Bray Wyatt character was pretty surprising too. It was however the ending that was the true standout.
Strowman came up from ringside wearing the Black Sheep mask. Bray and his puppets were pretty excited. Braun was going to work with Bray Wyatt yet again. Then Braun quickly stomped on the mask, hit a power slam and got an abrupt victory. It is surprising because the point of the match seemed to be setting up a future rematch.
With the flashes of The Fiend at the end, it seems we will get a rematch. Was it worth it? Time will tell.
#4 WWE Championship Match was the Best Match of the Performance Center Era
It is really hard to have a great match in the Performance Center. The lack of crowd noise to cheer on the superstars makes it difficult to gauge its true quality. That was until Drew McIntyre faced Seth Rollins at Money in the Bank. We now have a match to judge others against.
Seth Rollins has always been one of the best wrestlers in the company. It was surprising to see Drew McIntyre showcase his great wrestling talents as well. The match was a fast-paced twenty minute classic. We had suicide dives, head butts, lots of knee strikes and overhead belly to belly suplex on the table.
The ending sequence with both superstars trading moves and finishers was great. It was like Drew’s finisher came out of nowhere. It was the right decision but made both superstars look great. It is proof you can have a great match without fans.
#3 The entire Money in the Bank ladder match presentation
It would appear the best way for the WWE to present their matches during the pandemic of 2020 is in true cinematic fashion. It sure seems to beat presenting matches from the empty arena with no crowd reaction. After the Boneyard Match and the Firefly Funhouse Match at WrestleMania could this Money in the Bank match at WWE Headquarters live up to those fun moments? It certainly depends who you ask but I enjoyed the surprising comedy of these two ladder matches.
We had food fights, PTSD flashbacks for AJ Styles, a comically bad cameo by Stephanie McMahon. It was unique to say the least.
It is actually impressive how well the WWE can present these styles of matches. It is proof you can film some excellent looking matches with a very limited crew. I don’t know if it would work for every match but a once a month cinematic match would be a lot of fun in the coming months. The WWE has proven that three times now. And it is still weird Vince McMahon has a T-Rex fossil head in his office.
#2 Asuka wins the Women’s Money in the Bank Match
If one person has truly thrived in the Performance Center Era it is Asuka. She has appeared on multiple shows where she has danced and spoke in some really fast Japanese. She has earned her place by being truly entertaining. But did any of us expect Asuka to win the Money in the Bank?
It seemed some women in the match were truly afterthoughts. Carmella was thrown through a table and never recovered. Dana Brooke shipped and fell thus ending her chances. Shayna Baszler was the most surprising. She never made it to the roof and simply disappeared. It is a shame that she has fallen so far, so fast.
It left Asuka, Lacey Evans and Nia Jax to get to the roof. It was unique to see Asuka eliminate those two and even King Corbin, on her way to the win. It is fun to see her rewarded for her great work. But do we want to see her face Becky Lynch again?
#1 Otis wins the Men’s Money in the Bank
If you told me at the beginning of the year that Otis would be one of the most over babyfaces in the WWE, I would laugh. If you told me he would be in the Money in the Bank ladder match, I would call you a liar. The idea that he would actually win the Men’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match in 2020? Well it is a strange new pandemic world and Otis is King.
The actual match-up on the roof was pretty brief. After Corbin destroyed two opponents, he proceeded to fight on the roof with the other three. Daniel Bryan was taken out after being rammed into the ring post. AJ Styles and King Corbin fought at the top of the ladder when Elias interfered. This caused them to drop the briefcase and watch it fall into Otis’ hands. Otis won the Money in the Bank by accident.
It will be interesting to see where Otis goes from here. He doesn’t seem like the most credible challenger for Drew McIntyre or Braun Strowman. Will he be able to hold onto the briefcase? Will he be a serious threat or a joke? It was a shocking end to one unique night.
