This year’s Money in the Bank, touted as something as great as WrestleMania, really did leave its mark on the land of WWE. From the dream match to the main event, everything entertained the fans or progressed the storylines. This year’s MITB had a few surprises to spring on the WWE universe and they sure did it raise our eyebrows and quickened our heartbeats.
Here are the five surprises that the WWE sprang on us.
#5 Dudleys putting over Lucha Dragons
Though this happened on pre-show it is something that came as a surprise. The Dudley Boyz have not been booked dominantly ever since their return. But, making them lose to the Lucha Dragons, a team that has not even seen action as a tag team for a couple of months, is utterly unexpected.
The Dudleys claim that they are the baddest tag team and how WWE expects fans to buy that if they lose to Lucha Dragons is beyond understanding. The status of Dudley Boyz has been on a steady decline since WrestleMania and the WWE needs to look into it ASAP. If not, beating The Dudleys will not be seen as a feat to achieve for new tag teams that come in.
#4 Rusev – the heat magnet
Rusev getting the win over Titus was a given as we headed into the PPV. But, the after match shenanigans was completely expected. If WWE bringing in Titus’ children to the match and match is bad, Rusev insulting Titus after the match by calling him a loser in front of his kids was worse.
WWE is building Rusev as a monster heel, but the lengths they go to accumulate heat on Rusev is really disturbing. Just a week ago, WWE accumulated heat on Rusev by making him claim that he is greater than Ali. Now, they have made Rusev to insult Titus, one the most beloved babyfaces, right in front of his kids on a Fathers Day, WWE has to be careful with where they are taking this.
#3 Natalya turning heel
Of all the things that were listed in this list, this is the biggest surprise. To be honest, no one saw it coming. Heading into the match, there wasn’t even a slight indication as to the split. But, I am kind of glad they did it because of two reasons.
One, by turning heel Natalya’s character gets a new arc. Frankly, Natalya has done it all when it comes to being a babyface. She has been the ultimate underdog, a challenger who has the fans sympathy and more. With the heel turn, she can now put over newer talents much like Jericho does.
Two, this means that there will be more than one storyline happening at the same time in the Women’s division. It is about time that the WWE started booking the Women’s division seriously. Now, we also have a legitimate reason for Becky Lynch to step away from the title picture and focus on her character evolution.
#2 Two WWE title changes in one night
Heading into the PPV, the betting odds didn’t even favour a single WWE World Heavyweight Championship change till one hour before the show started. But, WWE sprang one on everyone by giving not one, but two title changes in a span of five minutes.
The best thing about this is that none of the three involved in the changes will be affected by it. Roman and Rollins wrestled a darn good match to ensure that both of them won’t be hurt by the outcome. If making Rollins go over Reigns clean was a surprise, making Ambrose deliver Rollins’ own medicine to him is a double bonus.
And honestly, no one expected the Shield Triple Threat to happen anywhere apart from WrestleMania. But, now the possibility looms big for SummerSlam!
#1 Ambrose, the new face of the company
If someone had told me that Ambrose would be the new face of the company after Sunday, I would have laughed in their face. Though I am a big fan of Ambrose, given how high the WWE was on both Roman and Rollins it looked like Ambrose was never going to make it. It looked like he was always going to be a second fiddle to Rollins and Reigns.
Ambrose not only arrived on the main event scene by winning the briefcase on Sunday, he just became the new face of the company. But with how things stand as of now, it is really hard to determine who is a face and who is a heel. Though WWE is projecting Roman as a face, the WWE universe seems to rebel against it. On the other hand, despite WWE and Rollins’ huge effort to portray Rollins as a heel, the fans are cheering for him.
Dean Ambrose is now a legit face who has both the backing of WWE Universe and necessary skill-sets. Things are getting unpredictable in WWE just like the Lunatic Fringe himself. Watch out folks, WWE may pull of another surprise in the coming weeks.
