10 Wrestlers Who Innovated New Stipulation Matches
8. Chris Jericho - Money In The Bank
Chris Jericho's pitch to create the Money In The Bank Ladder match was as much a solution as it was an idea - a tremendous concept devised by one of the industry's most powerful ever minds.
With John Cena and Batista set to dominate the WrestleMania 21 headline picture ahead of their coronations as the new quasi-Hulk Hogan and Ultimate Warrior figures, the new tier left behind a stacked upper midcard with little to do. This was before the Network allowed for a limitless run-time, and before WWE had the luxury - the luxury this match indirectly created - of promoting multi-man matches as artless appeasement strategies.
The process unfolded in rare, perfect synergy between worker and booker. Jericho recognised the deficit on the card, and responded to "boring" Triple Threat Submission match ideas with a six-man Ladder match pitch.
Instantly, this nebulous match was more exciting - but was it meaningful?
Brian Gewirtz - who you might remember as the one man on that Ruthless Aggression documentary who didn't talk bullsh*t - asked this very question. Jericho had the idea for the match to double as a title shot, which Gewirtz workshopped into the enduring Money In The Bank concept.
And for once, Vince's prop-obsessed brain came in handy; the iconic briefcase was his one demand.