10 Best Money In The Bank PPV Matches
9. CM Punk Vs. Daniel Bryan (2012)
A glorious modern masterclass between old independent workhorses that survived an unwelcome injection of Sports Entertainment (and at one point, Kane), CM Punk's title defence against Daniel Bryan was another scuffle confined to the midcard despite Punk's increasingly-impressive title reign.
With Bryan's former storyline fiancée (and Punk's future real life wife) AJ Lee assuming referee duties thanks to her storyline infatuation with the 'Voice Of The Voiceless', a sledgehammer of plot was destined to be swung in the direction of the finish, but neither man allowed it to spoil other aspects of their bruising battle.
Vicious leg kick wars augmented brutal UFC-style exchanges of punches and submissions in a battle that repeatedly spilled in and out of the ring without ever reducing their pace or fury as a No Disqualification rule was taken full advantage of. The pair got valuable minutes out of a kendo stick war - both in battling for it and with it, before returning to honest-to-god pro wrestling over needless gimmickry for a thrilling home stretch.
AJ Lee's involvement late in the contest didn't fully reveal her allegiances but did introduce a steel chair and a table again expertly employed to generate maximum response from minimum impact. Punk missing his Savage elbow drop directly onto the chair led to a last gasp charge from the challenger before a long-teased table spot actually furnished the finish instead of providing a mere prop spot.