10 Things You Didn't Know About WWE Money In The Bank
4. The Success Rate Is Criminal
This is a subjective take on the history of Money In The Bank as a star-making vehicle, but realistically, it doesn't function in the same way as, say, the traditional Royal Rumble win.
Edge (2005) got over massively, using his cash-in not just to win the WWE title from John Cena but to shape the 'Ultimate Opportunist' character with which he finally cracked the main event.
Rob Van Dam's (2006) advance cash-in was a great idea, true babyface behaviour, and well overdue. But he messed it up. WWE messed it up a year later when they misdiagnosed Mr. Kennedy's injury (2007). As mentioned, they didn't care about CM Punk in 2008, but in 2009, his cash-in led to one of the best programmes in WWE history. Kane and The Miz (2010) did not work out; the former worked a rubbish continuation of his feud with the Undertaker, where the Miz didn't feel worthy of the WrestleMania main event.
Daniel Bryan and Alberto Del Rio (2011) were glorified midcarders, again; Bryan got over in spite of his "push" with the briefcase. He did it by himself. Dolph Ziggler (2012) created an unforgettable memory, but never made it after that. His 2012 co-winner, John Cena, was already a headliner. In 2013, Damien Sandow failed to cash-in, much less make it, and Randy Orton didn't need it. In 2014, Seth Rollins used the rub to create an all-time "WrestleMania Moment", and a bad storyline with the Authority aside, his 2015 was awesome. He was infantilised, but also wrestled one of the great WWE in-ring runs. A score draw was a rout by the standards of the time.
The lineage became omni-f*cked after that, with not a single winner, with the possible exception of Dean Ambrose, doing anything of note post-2014. Big E's win was nice, but that's about it. Baron Corbin, Liv Morgan, Otis and Austin Theory were far worse off than they were before winning the match.
The briefcase has had the desired effect, at most, three times. It's just as well the match is as exciting as it is, because winning it means too little too often.