Money In The Bank 2020
- LDR
- May 12, 2020
- 7 min read
As the first show following a very unique Wrestlemania, Money In The Bank certainly had me intrigued with the titular matches being held at Titan Towers. The superstars involved in these matches had to go to WWE headquarters and make their way to the roof before starting to climb the ladder. This, along with some promising looking matches, had me very keen for this show, so let’s see what was a jackpot and what was a busted flush.
Jeff Hardy v Cesaro (Kickoff Match)
This match was exactly what it looks like on paper. Cesaro is underrated in the extreme and can have a good match with anyone, so this pair would never struggle. That being said, this was nothing special and just gave Jeff the win he needed on his return.
SmackDown Tag Team Championship Fatal 4-Way Match
The frantic nature of a Fatal 4-Way was observed through the entirety of this match, with each team having ample time to shine. New Day are somehow still clearly over despite no crowd to prove the fact, but they deserve their spot at the top of the tag division. All of the teams were putting up some great performances, with Lucha House Party’s slick ropewalking, Miz and Morrison being the opportunistic heels, Forgotten Sons using the numbers advantage of Jaxson Ryker – who was eventually ejected from ringside - and New Day showing their veteran status definitely doesn’t hold them back. Non-stop action led into a number of near-falls and broken pins, blind tags and big moves before Big E caught Gran Metalik from a springboard attempt into the Big Ending to keep the belts with the champs.
Bobby Lashley v R-Truth
R-Truth came down to the ring to face MVP as advertised, but Truth wanted to let MVP know that he was also ballin’ and would hold his own. This led to Bobby Lashley storming the ring with his renewed focus and taking MVP’s place. Truth tried to talk his way out of the match but accidentally slapped Lashley, setting off the big man. Lashley wiped out Truth in moments and that was that. Lashley looked dominant and R-Truth played his comedy jobber-to-the-stars perfectly, so I can’t ask for anything more from this.
SmackDown Women’s Championship Match
Tamina was never the most inspired opponent to challenge for Bayley’s title, but the build to this had built her up as a credible physical threat at the very least. The tension building between Bayley and Sasha Banks was also a factor in the lead up, which isn’t anything new, but could be interesting if it is FINALLY taken beyond the teasing phase – otherwise just stop it. Bayley immediately disrespected her opponent by slapping her challenger in the face and talking trash, leading to a dominating spell from a fired up Tamina. The champ managed to smash Tamina’s knee into the ringpost, creating a target that she fixated on for the remainder of the match. A well-applied kneebar had the challenger on the ropes, but the bottle of water thrown in her face brought her back in a ferocious way. Tamina hit a superkick and a Samoan drop and looked to have the match won before Banks slid into the ring. The distraction kept Tamina from going for the cover and eventually allowed Bayley to get a roll-up of her own to retain the title. Nothing out-of-this-world here, but a good showing from all involved made this entertaining enough for what it was.
Universal Championship Match
The history between challenger Bray Wyatt and Universal champion Braun Strowman is deep and well documented, and was leant on heavily here – as it was in the build. Without The Fiend to take the aggressive lead, Bray was on the back foot for a lot of this match. However, this was far better thought out, written and performed than Bray’s previous non-Fiend match against The Miz. This character being able to take two forms is similar to Finn Balor’s Demon and should be used to protect the aura in the same way. With Braun retaining here, it was the right decision to use the man behind the mask. Wyatt had support throughout from his Firefly Fun House friends, who cheered him on and tried to help convince Braun to return to the fold. It did, at one point, seem as though Bray’s attempts were successful, with Strowman rising from the side of the ring with the black sheep mask on. He knelt before his former master and they even shared an embrace before The Monster Among Men removed the mask and stomped it under his boot. Bray Wyatt’s joy turned to disappointment and then despair, as Bruan lifted him up for a running powerslam and the 1-2-3. Braun retained in a fairly fun match, with a lot of call-backs and in-jokes, which has left a Strowman v Fiend match on the table for sometime down the line.
WWE Championship Match
Seth Rollins debut a new entrance song - one which will suit his heel persona far more than the crowd-popping “Burn It Down” - on his way to take on the new WWE champion Drew McIntyre. These two have been on fire between the ropes recently and the story going in was that Seth believed himself the leader that RAW needed and that Drew was not on his level in that department. Seth winning the title was, in his eyes, a necessity – not a choice. The match saw both men give their best, with the champion taking the early advantage before Rollins aimed at the knee. Having slowed the Scotsman down, The Monday Night Messiah began to take control, hitting dives, knees, a superkick and a frog splash. Drew was resilient, kicking out of multiple pin attempts – including after the Falcon Arrow (No one kicks out of the Falcon Arrow!) and a stomp - which nearly drove Rollins to use a chair. Realising he couldn’t win the championship that way, Seth went back to the well for the stomp. Drew had a creative counter ready, snapping out of the way to hit a Glasgow Kiss headbutt, but Rollins replied with a superkick. Drew, using the momentum put upon him by the kick, flew into a Claymore and kept hold of his title. McIntyre then showed the class of a true champion by putting his hand out for the handshake, which Seth reluctantly accepted.
Money In The Bank Ladder Matches
Continuing the trend of “unique” matches on PPV during these uncertain times, the 6 men and 6 women in each respective match gathered on the ground floor of WWE headquarters. Asuka managed to get a quick jump on her opponents, literally, by diving from a higher balcony on to Carmella, Dana Brooke, Nia Jax, Shayna Baszler and Lacey Evans. She then dashed into the closest lift and headed towards the roof. Someone was always going to take this strategy and it made Asuka look very smart to have not allowed anyone else in with her. Meanwhile, the men started out in a gym area, with Rey Mysterio using parallel bars to hit some offence on Aleister Black, King Corbin throwing a weight disc at Daniel Bryan – mimicking a very similar spot in the recent fight between Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa at the Performance Centre – and Otis trapping AJ Styles under a huge amount of weight with a full bar. Styles went after Mysterio for refusing to free him but was stopped in his tracks when he came face to face with a poster of The Undertaker. AJ shook it off, but then opened a door to a room with a sinister blue glow, a casket and an urn, bringing memories of his Wrestlemania beating to the fore. Aleister Black took advantage with a strong kick and shut Styles in the room of his nightmares. Around the same time, Carmella, Lacey Evans, Nia Jax and Dana Brooke found themselves in a room with a briefcase suspended from the ceiling. Brooke managed to down all of her opponents and take the prize down, but was swiftly reminded by Stephanie McMahon that the actual briefcase was on the roof. Carmella then smashed a picture of herself over Brooke’s head, before tasting a Woman’s Right herself.
The majority of the competitors from both matches found themselves in the same corridor at one point and, in true WWE fashion, it was the home of catering. Paul Heyman was fixing himself a snack when he was interrupted by the outbreak of a mass food fight which included Shayna Baszler putting Mysterio in the Kirafuda Clutch and Otis and Nia sandwiching the masked superstar before the action started to break off again. Otis found another cafeteria area, this time with deserts line up along the side and was joined by former General Manager John Laurinaitis, who took a cream pie to the face for his troubles. One of the better moments also came from here, with Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles scrapping into Vince McMahon’s office, where The Boss was hard at work. As soon as both men realised where they were, they stopped, straightened up and put everything back in its proper place. The Chairman barely said a word but managed to create one of the more memorable moments with two men clearly game to have a small laugh at their own expense. Finally reaching the roof, Asuka fought with Nia Jax and Lacey Evans, while King Corbin threw Mysterio and Black off the side of the roof. Both Asuka and Corbin climbed the ladder, getting in each other’s way. Asuka took the initiative and kick Corbin from the ladder, allowing her to grab the women’s briefcase and the win. King Corbin managed to recover in time to slow AJ Style’s attempts at the men’s prize, but a tug-of-war ensued. Elias then appeared to smash Corbin with a guitar, loosening his grip. AJ, not expecting this, also lost his grip and dropped the case into the waiting arms of Otis.
So there you have it, Asuka is Mrs Money in the Bank, Otis is Mr Money in the Bank and we had a PPV in 2020 that went for less than 2 and a half hours. Crazy, heady days, but an overall entertaining show was very welcome and has opened up some new avenues to explore. Otis is an interesting choice and I can see him losing his briefcase before he can cash it in, but it is at least something different and a clear reward for someone who is clearly well liked and being well pushed. Also, a personal shout out for moments such as Brother Love, (not) Doink the Clown and those massive dinosaur bones on Vinnie Mac’s wall.
What did you think of Money in the Bank? Do you think the winners were good choices and where would you go from here?
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