10 Ways WWE Screwed Up At Money In The Bank 2017
Brace yourselves: the 'Summer of Ellsworth' is upon us...
Money In The Bank had the potential to have a hugely transformative impact on WWE's upcoming direction. SmackDown is locked in stasis. With the summer slump in full effect, the blue brand desperately needed an eventful show to bring its slumber to an end and restore the quality that once made it WWE's most enjoyable weekly show.
The pay-per-view was certainly eventful, but while there was plenty of good in-ring action on display, the show was ultimately bogged down by a series of questionable booking decisions. The night should have been defined by the historic first women's MITB ladder match, and it was, but the fact that we're talking about James Ellsworth rather than the victor, Carmella, speaks volumes of the night's failings.
The briefcases should at least shake up the WWE and Women's Title scenes, but WWE have locked themselves into a story that has already angered much of the fanbase with the Ellsworth situation, and is Baron Corbin really the right guy to dispel the main event's chronically low enthusiasm levels?
We'll find out over the coming weeks, but WWE have left themselves with a huge mess to clean-up, all thanks to their own series of blunders...
10. Booking A Flat Women's Title Match
Naomi and Lana’s SmackDown Women’s Championship match wasn’t even close to as bad as it could've been. Naomi is a tremendous athlete, but still carries a handful of in-ring deficiencies, while Lana is a complete rookie, having wrestled just a single televised WWE bout prior to last night. Their contest should’ve been a trainwreck, but it wasn't, and that should be considered a minor success in itself.
Putting the bout together in the first place was a mistake, however. WWE booked themselves into a corner by "making history" with the women’s MITB ladder match, which left Naomi desperately short of opponents. Thus, they were forced to booked her against Lana for the sake of having their Women’s Champion wrestle on the PPV, and the match did nothing to push the division forward.
The booking sends the message that any rank amateur can stroll into SmackDown and score a title shot out of nowhere. This not only undermines the other competitors in the division, but also the belt itself, and at a time when the Women’s Revolution is dangerously close to falling off a cliff, Money In The Bank could’ve really used some smarter booking.