'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
When the Money in the Bank Ladder match was first introduced in 2005, no one knew that it would become one of the most popular matches in the years to come. Just like Royal Rumble match, the Money in the Bank is now a stepping stone for any superstar to enter the main event picture and has made megastars out of plenty of talented wrestlers.
Follow Sportskeeda for the latest WWE news, rumors and all other wrestling news.
In the past 13 years, WWE presented 20 Money in the Bank Ladder matches and will present two more when it visits the All State Arena in Chicago for the 9th Annual Money in the Bank pay per view. The past winners have had various kinds of impacts on the WWE programming in the subsequent years, some in a good way and some in a bad way.
With 8 talented female and 8 talented male superstars guaranteed to put everything on the line to win that contract, it is hard to predict who will win at the event. Until then, as a small visit down the memory lane, we rank all the past wins according to their long-term impact on the superstars and the WWE programming overall.
Disclaimer:- Carmella's two wins will be counted as one only as she was stripped of the first and won the second only two days later.
#19 Ken Kennedy (2007)
Boy, it sure won't be unfair to call the Mr. Kennedy character one of the biggest failures in the history of the WWE. Once regarded as the future superstar, Kennedy was out of the company just 4 years after his debut, and his downfall began just after he won the briefcase at WrestleMania 23.
While the victory was welcomed by the crowd and fans in a positive way, Kennedy became the only man to actually lose his contract to some other superstar after he was suspended for a wellness violation, deeming his victory completely worthless. Had Kennedy actually cashed in the contract himself, his win would have certainly been way higher on this list.
#18 Baron Corbin (2017)
Baron Corbin is now trapped in the dead end of the sea from where there is no escaping. However, there was a time when Corbin was the biggest heel on the Blue Brand. Following a successful debut year on the main roster, Corbin was chosen to win the big match ahead of the likes of AJ Styles and Kevin Owens. Who knew that it was just the beginning of the downfall for the Lone Wolf?
Backstage heat and awful behaviour came to bite Corbin back, as not only did he lose his guaranteed title match to Jinder Mahal, he lost it without giving any real fight to the champion. This was followed by a glorious squash at the hands of John Cena at Summerslam. Even though he held the US Title for a period of two months after this, the days of Corbin being in the main event ended with his failed Money in the bank cash in.
#17 Damien Sandow (2013)
How WWE managed to make a mess out of this is still hard for me to decode. The persona of Damien Sandow had World Champion written all over it. The Intellectual Saviour was an automatic heat magnet, someone who the crowd loved to hate, and WWE destroyed his Aura by making him the first man to lose the Money in the Bank contract cash-in match.
Although he became a popular character over a year after the event when he became Damien Mizdow, he was light years away from the Main Event Picture that he was destined to achieve. A World Title win against Del Rio and a subsequent feud with former teammate Cody Rhodes could have done wonders for him. However, he was buried deep in the mud by our next entrant on this list.
#16 John Cena (2012)
Why did John Cena need a Money in the Bank briefcase when he can successfully challenge any Champion whenever he wants to? By 2012, Big Match John was the biggest superstar in the company and hence giving him the Money in the Bank briefcase was a big waste of opportunity when it could have been some up and coming superstar instead.
In order to build Cena as the hero in this story, they decided to have him announce his cash in date beforehand, and then have him lose his opportunity. Instead of going for a sneak cash in by Cena and turn him heel successfully, they turned CM Punk heel instead after the cash in. Cena stayed in the main event picture for the rest of the year, even facing the winner of the other briefcase at TLC 2012, which rendered this win, and loss, completely worthless.
#15 Jack Swagger (2010)
Money in the Bank match at 'Mania 26 was the most crowded match in the history of the stipulation, and WWE chose the blandest and dull superstar as the winner. Even MVP, or Evan Bourne, could have been a better choice than Jack Swagger. Although Swagger was a former ECW champion, but so was Christian, and he was way more popular with the crowd than Swagger.
A cheap rip-off of Kurt Angle's All-American character, Swagger's cash in and subsequent title defence was so underwhelming that he lost the title only after two months to Rey Mysterio and was stuck in the lower mid-card for the next 3 years. The fact that WWE presented two more MITB Ladder matches 3 months later also lowered the importance of this victory.
#14 Sheamus (2015)
There is no doubt that Sheamus is one of the hardest workers in the WWE. The man is capable of wrestling a good match with every superstar on the current roster. However, his Money in the Bank win in 2015 was not something that people were expecting for the Celtic Warrior at this stage of his career. Although he is a multi-time World Champion, his victory came 5 years too late.
Winning the WWE Title at Survivor Series 2015, Sheamus was only used as a bait to get Roman Reigns over with the crowd. Fast forward a month later, and Sheamus had lost the WWE Title back to Roman Reigns on an episode of Raw. While Roman went on to main event WrestleMania 32, Sheamus wrestled a nonsensical tag team match as a member of the League of Nation. If that isn't a big fall, then I don't know what exactly is.
#13 Alberto Del Rio (2011)
While Jack Swagger was the most boring superstar from the 10 superstars that participated in the MITB ladder match at 'Mania 26, there is certainly no competition when it comes to the blandest winner in the history, as Alberto Del Rio proudly occupies the top spot. Highly popular, but monotonous in character, the gargantuan push that Del Rio got after his debut saw him win both Royal Rumble and MITB in his debut year.
Since 2011 was the year of CM Punk in WWE, it was hard to imagine anyone but Punk holding the WWE Title. While Del Rio managed to pin Punk twice in 3 months to win the WWE Title, both his reigns lasted less than a month each. While Punk began his legendary 434-day reign as Champion by defeating Del Rio at Survivor Series, Del Rio spent the next year losing to Sheamus before an unexpected face turn brought life to his character.
#12 Carmella (2017)
WWE hit their own foot with an axe by ruining their monumental first ever Women Money in the Bank Ladder match last year. Of all the people on the roster, WWE chose a man, that also one James Ellsworth, to unhook the briefcase and hand it over to Carmella. Realising their mistake, WWE had another MITB ladder match two days later with Carmella winning that one too, completely deeming her first win worthless.
Speaking of Carmella, despite holding the briefcase for over 9 months, she was not prominently featured on major female storyline throughout that period. In fact, it wasn't until 'Mania season that she started teasing cash-in attempts. If her title defence against Charlotte at Backlash is a sign of things to come, then it won't be wrong the say that Carmella experiment has failed as she is expected to drop the title to Asuka at Money in the Bank.
#11 Randy Orton (2013)
Now this is where the line between awful winners and satisfying winners starts to blur. Just like John Cena, Randy Orton was a multiple time World Champion when he won the Money in the Bank. However, unlike Cena, Orton was struggling in the mid-card under that bland babyface and needed a change of character. This is exactly what Money in the Bank win gave to The Viper.
Not only did Orton successfully cash in the contract, he did that on the biggest babyface in the company in Daniel Bryan. Even though his program with Bryan generated underwhelming results, it finally gave Orton his first lengthy title reign since 2008 and his second ever 'Mania main event match. The only thing that prevents this from being higher on this list is the fact that Orton was portrayed as a paper champion in this period.
#10 Dolph Ziggler (2012)
Dolph Ziggler has probably seen more crests and troughs in the history of the promotion than any other superstars. He has been defeated by lower mid-card talents and has defeated megastars like John Cena at different times of his career. Ziggler's Money in the Bank win, however, can be termed as the day that started his golden period as evident from the pop that his contract win and subsequent title win generated.
The period between Ziggler's win and cash in was just pure gold, with Ziggler earning vital wins against veterans Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, John Cena, and let's not talk about the moment he won the title from Del Rio. It is undoubtedly one of the best moments in WWE history. Its aftermath - Ziggler suffered a concussion, lost the title to Del Rio two months later, turned face and moved back to the mid-card after Summerslam 2013.
#9 CM Punk (2008)
2008 was a weird time for WWE. While established stars like Undertaker, Shawn Michaels and Chris Jericho were making a slow return to the World Title picture, many other mid card superstars were also beginning to enter the main event picture. Had it not been for a Wellness Violation, it would have been Jeff Hardy holding that briefcase. Hence, CM Punk was given the opportunity, and it really did wonders for the Straight Edge Superstar's career.
Becoming the only ECW superstar to ever win the illustrious briefcase, this win started Punk's ascent to the top of the WWE ladder. Successfully cashing in the briefcase on Edge, he enjoyed a respectable 3-month reign as World Champion before he was forced to vacate the title. However, Punk maintained his momentum in the subsequent months, winning both Intercontinental Title and Tag Titles before making history at WrestleMania XXV.
#8 Rob Van Dam (2006)
Although he was portrayed as a heel when he debuted back in 2001, RVD's in-ring work made him quite popular with the fans. Dubbed Mr. Monday/Thursday night, RVD was the backbone of the mid card on both WWE brands, but was still missing that one much deserved run at the top of the ladder. And then came WrestleMania 22, the day RVD became Mr. Money in the Bank and started his run as the main event player.
His program with Shelton Benjamin over the briefcase was nothing short of phenomenal. After becoming the first person to pre announce his date of cash in, RVD famously won the WWE Champion from John Cena at Hammerstein Ballroom. He was even awarded the reinstated ECW Championship two days later. RVD, however, fell victim to his own demons, as a drug possession arrest forced WWE to remove both titles from him within 24 hours.
#7 Kane (2010)
After being a staple for WrestleMania for 6 years, Money in the Bank became a staple of its namesake event in 2010, and big surprises emerged from the new pay per view. The biggest of them all was the beginning of the resurgence of 'The Big Red Monster' Kane. Never the top draw in the company despite being a 14-year-old veteran, Kane's surprising victory in the Blue Brand's ladder match brought a new life to his career.
If winning the Briefcase was not enough of a shock for the fans, Kane took it to a whole new level by cashing in on an injured Rey Mysterio less than an hour later, thus winning his first WWE World Title in 12 years. What followed was a 5-month long reign for The Devil's Favourite Demon, which had him feud with the likes of his brother The Undertaker and Edge. His reign also saw the final main event title defence of the World Heavyweight Title.
#6 Dean Ambrose (2016)
In 2015 and 2016, there was no wrestler in the whole roster who was more over and popular than Dean Ambrose. Despite being on the losing end of a number of top draw matches against Triple H, Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar, his popularity was soaring day by day. It was really hard for WWE to ignore this, and he was chosen to win the Money in the Bank in 2016, two years after he narrowly lost the prize to Seth Rollins.
Speaking of Rollins, Ambrose got his revenge on The Architect by pinning him on that very night, just minutes after he had regained the title from Roman Reigns. Ambrose held the title for a good 3 months, defending it against both Rollins and Reigns at Battleground, before dropping it to AJ Styles at Backlash. Since then, Ambrose has had a majestic feud with AJ Styles and captured the Intercontinental Title in January 2017. Out because of injury, Ambrose is expected to make his return in August 2018.
#5 The Miz (2010)
This is where we move into the career-changing wins for a superstar. Back in early 2010, The Miz was having a fun run in the mid-card on Raw. His tremendous reign as US Champion was perfectly complemented by his simultaneous reign as Unified Tag Champions with Big Show. Never considered a bonafide professional wrestler, his career took a turn for good when he won the Red Brand's Money in the Bank Contract in 2010.
Cashing in on a frail Randy Orton on the night after Survivor Series 2010, The Miz became the first Reality TV star to hold the top prize of WWE. As an icing on the cake, The Miz held on the title through the WrestleMania season and even defeated John Cena in the main event of 'Mania 27. Since then, The Miz has turned into one of the best all-round performers in the company and is a favourite to win the contract this year as well.
#4 CM Punk (2009)
While his Money in the Bank victory in 2008 shot him into the main event scene for a short period of time, it wasn't until his win in the same match next year that he became a bonafide megastar in the company. Etching his name in the record books by winning the match for the second consecutive year, the victory marked the beginning of a much-needed character change for the Straight Edge Superstar in mid-2009.
Cashing in the contract on a drained out Jeff Hardy at Extreme Rules, it started a slow-burning heel turn for Punk and a phenomenal rivalry with Jeff Hardy that was the center of focus on the Blue Brand throughout the summer. For the next two year, Punk was the prime heel in WWE, feuding with like of Mysterio, Orton and others before the infamous Pipebomb took place. The rest, as we all know, is glorified history.
#3 Daniel Bryan (2011)
Daniel Bryan had all the talent in the world to be a world-class wrestler, yet no one was giving him a shot at reaching the top of the ladder in the Land of Giants called WWE. This is what made his Money in the Bank victory in 2011 so special. On an event that is fondly remembered as the day, CM Punk finally reached the top of the WWE Ladder, Daniel Bryan started his ascent up that same ladder.
Just like CM Punk in 2009, the victory started a slow-burning heel turn for The American Dragon. After winning the World Heavyweight Title from Big Show at TLC, Bryan initiated the Yes chants that he is still associated with till this day. Although Bryan lost the title to Sheamus in a humiliating way at 'Mania 28, he subsequently had a phenomenal program with CM Punk, formed a fun team with Kane and, of course, won the title in the main event of Summerslam 2013 and 'Mania 30.
#2 Seth Rollins (2014)
The Shield dissolution in 2014 was both one of the most shocking and the best thing that could have happened in WWE back then. Not only did it make way for three exceptional superstars' singles run, it also initiated one of the most stunning heel run in the past 10 years. The culprit - Seth Rollins- was already a star before that, but a monumental win at Money in the Bank 2014 turned him into the megastar that he is now.
His program with Dean Ambrose, that ran from mid-2014 to mid-2015, was the best rivalry in WWE in that period. As the face of the Authority, Rollins set the whole world on fire by cashing in the contract in the main event of WrestleMania 31 to win the title in the heist of the century. Holding the title for over 7 months, Rollins wrestled and outlasted various wrestlers like Randy Orton and John Cena before vacating the title due to injury.
#1 Edge (2005)
It really tough to outmatch the original, and this goes very right with the Money in the Bank wins as well. WWE presented their first ever Money in the Bank ladder match at 'Mania 21 with the aim of keeping all the big superstars without a program on the 'Mania card, but who would have thought that they would end up shaping up one of the most illustrious careers in the history of WWE.
Edge won, and gave birth to his Ultimate Opportunist persona with this win that stayed with him throughout his career. Becoming the biggest heel on the red brand, Edge had a tremendous feud with Matt Hardy before he won the WWE Title from John Cena in early 2006. While his initial runs with the title were short, the success of this period led to a total of 11 reigns with the World Title. Edge was to Smackdown what John Cena was to Raw, and he rightfully ended his career in 2011 as a World Heavyweight Champion.
What makes Sting special? His first AEW opponent opens up RIGHT HERE.
