18 Ups & 12 Downs From The WWE SmackDown Live Era
12. 'Mella Is Money
Carmella's record-setting run with the Money In The Bank briefcase helped transfer her from heel irritant to blue brand pet project in a year that wasn't without challenges for the relatively inexperienced NXT graduate.
Her run arguably peaked at the beginning thanks to a Money In The Bank do-over that was one of the best and most important contests from the SmackDown Live era. Making good on a hugely divisive finish to the pay-per-view version weeks earlier, the rematch was free of James Ellsworth's effective interference and loaded with ultra-dangerous spots that justified the overdue women's variant of the match.
Outlasting Enzo and Cass en route to eventually winning the Women's Title from Charlotte Flair before moving in a brand new direction with R-Truth, Carmella's spell atop the division was a case of on-the-job training done right.