5 Times Money in the Bank Changed a Superstar’s Career and 5 Times It Did Nothing for the Winner

#5 Did Nothing: John Cena

John Cena didn't need and didn't get much out of Money in the Bank.

When John Cena won a Money in the Bank Ladder Match in 2012, he was already well established as the face of WWE and arguably on the downward slope, transitioning out of that role. He used his briefcase to schedule a match with reigning WWE Champion CM Punk for the 1,000th episode of Raw. The match was momentous, if not for its quality, at least for setting up Punk’s heel turn that would change the landscape at the top of the card for months to follow.

However, when it comes to Cena, WWE could have just as easily arbitrarily placed him this match with Punk as used Money in the Bank as a device to get there. Indeed, this first failed cash in had less impact on Cena than it did on Money in the Bank itself. Here, it was proven that the briefcase wouldn’t always translate to a title, and to be fair, Cena was a good person to fail first given how bullet proof he and his WWE legacy already were by that point.