Lets face it: SummerSlam might be the big-name PPV of the season (one of the original Big Four), but its Sundays Money in the Bank PPV that will play a more central role in WWEs future. During the past decade, the Money in the Bank ladder match has grown in prominence as a part of WWEs annual booking plans. Much like the Royal Rumble, MITB has become a coveted prize, as it guarantees the winner a world championship match, with the biggest difference with the Rumble being the element of surprise. Since the MITB winner can pick the most opportune time to cash in, they are virtually guaranteed a title win. Thirteen of the 15 previous briefcase-holders have cashed in their title shots unannounced, winning 12 of those matches. What isn't clear is when that opportunity will strike. Some wrestlers have waited six months or longer (the record is 280 days), while others have waited mere days, or even less, before taking their shot. Earlier this year, we saw the 2014 briefcase-holder, Seth Rollins, wait until the WrestleMania XXXI main event was winding down to cash in, stealing the WWE World Heavyweight Championship in epic fashion. Not all the men who have held the briefcase had made such an impact with it, but its interesting to see who wasted no time in using the MITB contract to their advantage. Rollins waited 273 days to cash in his briefcase, the second-longest period. Lets find out who staked out their title opportunity the quickest how they fared.
Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.
