Money in the Bank (2018)


Money in the Bank was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event and WWE Network event, held by WWE for their Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. It was the ninth installment in the annual Money in the Bank series of events. It took place on June 17, 2018, at the Allstate Arena in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois.
The event featured eleven matches, including one match on the Kickoff pre-show. In the main event matches, the Money in the Bank ladder matches for men and women were won by Braun Strowman and Alexa Bliss respectively. Bliss cashed in her contract later in the night to win the WWE Raw Women's Championship from Nia Jax after causing a disqualification in the previous title match between Ronda Rousey and Jax. In other prominent matches, AJ Styles retained the WWE Championship against Shinsuke Nakamura in a Last Man Standing match and Carmella retained the WWE SmackDown Women's Championship against Asuka with help from the returning James Ellsworth.
The event received a mixed to positive reception from critics, with the ladder matches, WWE Championship, Raw Women's Championship and the Intercontinental Championship matches garnering the most praise. However, the remaining matches from the card, as well as the finish of the SmackDown Women's Championship match were negatively received.

Production

Background

is an annual gimmick pay-per-view produced by WWE since 2010 and generally held between June and July. The concept of the show comes from WWE's established Money in the Bank ladder match, in which multiple wrestlers use ladders to retrieve a briefcase hanging above the ring. The briefcase contains a contract that guarantees the winner a match for a world championship at any time within the next year. While the 2017 event was a SmackDown-exclusive pay-per-view, 2018 featured both the Raw and SmackDown brands as all WWE pay-per-views ceased being brand exclusive after WrestleMania 34 in April. The 2017 event also introduced the first women's MITB ladder match. 2018 in turn also had a men's and a women's match, which is now standard. For 2018, the contracts in the briefcases granted the winners a world championship match of their respective brand. Each match featured eight wrestlers, evenly divided between the two brands. Male wrestlers competed for a contract to grant them a match for either Raw's Universal Championship or SmackDown's WWE Championship, while female wrestlers competed for a Raw Women's Championship or SmackDown Women's Championship match contract. 2018 was the ninth event in the Money in the Bank chronology.
By November 2017, WWE had announced that the 2017 Money in the Bank event would take place on June 17, 2018, at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. Tickets went online on March 5, 2018 through Ticketmaster.

Storylines

The professional wrestling matches at Money in the Bank featured professional wrestlers performing as either heroes, villains, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches, with results predetermined by the hosting promotion, WWE, on the Raw and SmackDown brands.
The event card comprised eleven matches, including one on the Kickoff pre-show, that resulted from the scripted storylines which were produced on WWE's weekly television shows, Monday Night Raw and SmackDown Live.

Raw

Qualification for the Money in the Bank men's ladder match began on the May 7 episode of Raw. The first fixture involved Braun Strowman defeating Kevin Owens using a "running powerslam" to qualify. The second was a triple threat match involving Finn Bálor, Sami Zayn and Roman Reigns. During the bout, Jinder Mahal interfered and attacked Reigns, allowing Zayn to perform a "helluva kick". Bálor then immediately dropkicked Zayn and qualified by landing a "coup de grâce" to win the match. The following week, two more triple threat matches were conducted. The first bout had Bobby Roode winning against Baron Corbin and No Way Jose after Roode cleared Corbin from the ring and pinned Jose with a "glorious DDT". The second one featured Owens, Elias and Bobby Lashley, where Owens qualified by performing a "frog splash" on Elias after Zayn interfered and attacked Lashley.
Qualification for the women's ladder match also began on May 7. The first one was a triple threat match involving Ember Moon, Sasha Banks and Ruby Riott. Moon planted both Banks and Riott with a "double eclipse" and pinned the latter to earn a spot. Another triple threat match was held the following week, where Alexa Bliss qualified by defeating Bayley and Mickie James when she planted a "Bliss DDT" on the former. On the May 21 episode of Raw, a fatal four-way match between Natalya, Sarah Logan, Liv Morgan and Dana Brooke was conducted; In the climax, Natalya used a "sharpshooter" on Logan and qualified by submission. The final qualification match occurred next week, where Banks overcame Bayley, Brooke, James, Logan, Morgan, and Riott in a seven-woman gauntlet match to earn the final spot.
During the NBCUniversal Upfront event on May 14, Ronda Rousey was interviewed by television presenter Cathy Kelley. The defending Raw Women's Champion, Nia Jax, interrupted the interview and challenged Rousey to a match at Money in the Bank, putting her title on the line. Rousey accepted the challenge and they both signed the contract for their match the next week. The bout was also Rousey's first singles match with WWE. The week after on Raw, Jax tried to intimidate Rousey by demonstrating on an amateur wrestler that she would counter Rousey's "armbar" and perform a "samoan drop".
On the May 28 episode of Raw, Seth Rollins interrupted Elias, who was trying to sing for the crowd as a part of his gimmick, and forced him to leave. After Rollins' match against Mahal for the WWE Intercontinental Championship was over with Rollins retaining his title, Elias smashed a guitar on his back. On May 31, a match between the two for the Intercontinental Championship was organized for Money in the Bank.
After Mahal cost Reigns a chance to qualify for the Money in the Bank ladder match, Reigns attacked him backstage the following week resulting in a brawl which culminated with Reigns landing a "superman punch" on Mahal. On the May 21 episode, after Reigns and Seth Rollins defeated Mahal and Owens in a tag team match, Mahal attacked Reigns with a chair. A match between the two was then scheduled for Money in the Bank.
During a tag team match on the April 23 episode of Raw, Lashley performed a one-hand suspended vertical suplex on Zayn, which Zayn claimed gave him vertigo and why he missed the Greatest Royal Rumble. At Backlash, Lashley and Strowman defeated Owens and Zayn in a tag team match. During an interview on the May 7 episode, Lashley spoke dearly about his family, including his three sisters. In response, Zayn said that Lashley was not a nice guy and promised to bring out Lashley's sisters to tell the truth. On the May 21 episode, three men dressed up as Lashley's sisters accused Lashley of violence. Lashley interrupted the segment and attacked the imposters along with Zayn. The following week, a match between the two was made for Money in the Bank.

SmackDown

Qualifications for the men's ladder match continued during SmackDowns May 8 episode. The Miz and Rusev qualified for the match by beating Jeff Hardy and Daniel Bryan, respectively. The Miz countered a cover by Hardy after the latter performed a "swanton bomb" into a pinfall to win while Rusev qualified by landing a "machka kick" on Bryan. The following week, Big E and Xavier Woods of The New Day won against Cesaro and Sheamus in a tag team match, allowing one member of The New Day to qualify. Samoa Joe secured the final spot by defeating Bryan and Big Cass in a triple threat match on the May 29 episode, winning by making Bryan submit to the "coquina clutch".
Qualifications for the women's ladder match also continued on May 8, with Charlotte Flair qualifying over Peyton Royce by applying her signature "figure eight leglock". The following week, Becky Lynch won against Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville in a triple threat match after Lynch made the former tap out to the "dis-arm-her". On the May 22 episode, Lana and Naomi were the last two women to be qualified, both of them doing so by winning in singles matches against Billie Kay and Deville, respectively.
At WrestleMania 34, A.J. Styles won against Shinsuke Nakamura to retain the WWE Championship. After their bout, Nakamura attacked Styles with a "low blow", turning heel in the process. The two continued to feud through Greatest Royal Rumble and Backlash with their matches ending in draws. On May 14, SmackDown commissioner Shane McMahon announced a rematch between them for the fourth time at Money in the Bank, stating that every wrestling fan was "looking for a definitive winner". Nakamura was granted the right to choose the stipulation for the match after winning against Styles on SmackDowns May 15 episode by using a "kinshasa". The following week, Nakamura attacked Styles by dropping him onto the announcer's table and striking him with a "kinshasa"; Nakamura then chose a Last Man Standing match as his stipulation.
During the May 15 episode, SmackDown General Manager Paige interrupted SmackDown Women's Champion Carmella celebration of her reign and scheduled a title match between her and Asuka for Money in the Bank.
Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson defeated The Usos on the May 22 episode, therefore becoming the number one contenders to face The Bludgeon Brothers for the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship at Money in the Bank. Their bout was later scheduled for the Kickoff pre-show.
Cass and Bryan began feuding after the former returned from injury during the 2018 WWE Superstar Shake-up. Cass continued to taunt Bryan on the May 1 episode of SmackDown by calling him "small and weak" and declaring himself to be "a real WWE superstar" while beating up a midget dressed like Bryan. Their feud intensified when Cass eliminated Bryan from the Greatest Royal Rumble match by using a big boot. It eventually led to a match between them at Backlash where Bryan won against Cass, who attacked him again after the match. Bryan returned the favor by applying a "heel hook" on Cass during the May 15 episode and at a house show in Germany, where he injured Cass' leg. As a result, Bryan not only cost Cass his spot in an upcoming Money in the Bank qualifying fixture against Joe, but secured that spot for himself by beating Jeff Hardy on the May 22 episode. However, when Cass recovered and appeared the following week, the bout was turned into the aforementioned triple threat match, won by Joe. After the fixture was finished, Cass attacked Bryan again with a big boot. A rematch between the two was organized for Money in the Bank on June 2.

Event

Pre-show

During the Money in the Bank Kickoff pre-show, The Bludgeon Brothers defended the SmackDown Tag Team Championship against Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. In the climax, both Gallows and Anderson proceeded to apply the "magic killer" on Harper when Rowan speared Anderson and isolated Gallows. Harper and Rowan then performed "the reckoning" on Gallows to retain the titles.

Preliminary matches

The pay-per-view event opened with Big Cass facing off against Daniel Bryan. Cass began by getting a two-count after performing a "spinning side slam" on Bryan, who retaliated by targeting Cass' left knee with kicks and two "dragon screw legwhips". Bryan then slammed Cass' knee into the ring apron and ring post. Cass responded by using a "tilt-a-whirl" hold on Bryan, who then reversed the hold into a "YES lock". Cass reached the ropes to break out of the lock and dominated Bryan by gaining a two-count twice and applying the "big boot" for a near-fall. In the climax, Bryan performed a "running high knee" on Cass, who was about to put Bryan in a "torture rack", and forced him to submit with a "heel hook" for the victory.
The second match of the event featured Bobby Lashley and Sami Zayn. Lashley decisively secured a win by executing a "fallaway slam" and a "spinebuster" before performing three "vertical suplexes" on Zayn for the pinfall.
After Lashley and Zayn's match, Seth Rollins defended the Intercontinental Championship against Elias. The bout opened with Elias dominating the first half of the match with a series of "dropkicks" and "stomps" on Rollins before obtaining a near-fall with a "DDT". Rollins countered with a "suicide dive" and a "blockbuster" from the second turnbuckle. Both the wrestlers exchanged intense near-falls, one of which involved Rollins using a "superplex" followed by a "falcon arrow" and another where Elias performed an "elbow drop" from the top rope. Rollins retained the title when he pinned Elias with a "schoolboy" whilst holding Elias's tights to prevent him from kicking out.
The Women's Money in the Bank ladder match was the event's fourth fixture. Ember Moon, Charlotte Flair, Alexa Bliss, Becky Lynch, Natalya, Naomi, Lana, and Sasha Banks competed in it. At the beginning of the match, Moon landed a "somersault senton" on Becky Lynch and slammed Sasha Banks through a ladder with a "springboard dive". Soon after chopping Natalya, Charlotte Flair tried to use a ladder to get the briefcase but was interrupted by Lynch who fought over possession of the ladder. Naomi then dropkicked the ladder to take down both the wrestlers. During the middle of the bout, Lana placed another ladder adjacent to another one occupied by Lynch and Banks to get the briefcase. Moon and Natalya interfere, with Natalya pulling Banks off the ladder and executes a "slingshot powerbomb" on her through the ladder, knocking it off along with Lynch on it in the process. Flair also grabs hold off Moon and powerbombs her onto the ladder knocked off by Natalya. Bliss intervened and performed a "code red" on Flair. In the end, Lynch attempted to get the briefcase after using an "exploder suplex" on Flair only for Bliss to push the ladder causing Lynch to fall. Bliss ascended the ladder to retrieve the briefcase and win the match.
Next, Roman Reigns faced Jinder Mahal, who was accompanied by an injured Sunil Singh in a wheelchair. As Reigns dominated Mahal in the beginning of the fixture, Singh rose from his wheelchair and pushed Reigns into the ring post. Mahal took advantage of this and by stomping Reigns and applying a "chin lock". Reigns initially fought out of it but Mahal immediately went for a series of "rest holds". Reigns came back at Mahal with "leaping clotheslines". In the climax, Singh attempted to interfere but Reigns performed a "superman punch" and a "spear" on him. Mahal subsequently performed a "cradle" for a near-fall, but Reigns recovered and speared Mahal for the win.
In the sixth match, Carmella defended the SmackDown Women's Championship against Asuka. Carmella began by executing kicks to Asuka's knees and head before Asuka countered with a "kneebar". Carmella managed to get out of the hold by touching the ropes. Asuka then performed a "high knee", following it up with a "German suplex". As Asuka connected with a kick to Carmella and was about to pin her, she was distracted by a person masquerading as her. The masked figure revealed as a returning James Ellsworth. Carmella took advantage of the distraction and performed a "princess kick" on Asuka to keep the title.
After the SmackDown Women's Championship bout, A.J. Styles defended the WWE Championship against Shinsuka Nakamura in a Last Man Standing match. Early in the match, Nakamura aggressively countered Styles' "phenomenal forearm" by kicking Styles's leg. He then went for a "low blow" but Styles avoided it and landed a "Pelé kick". Midway through the bout, Nakamura performed a "kinshasa" on Styles on top of the German broadcast table, however, Styles stood up on the ninth count. Nakamura threw Styles through a table, which was positioned in the corner in the ring, only for Styles to stand again on the ninth count. Styles began to target Nakamura's leg and applied the "calf crusher" on Nakamura, who tapped out but did not lose as submissions do not count in a Last Man Standing match. Styles began to strike Nakamura with a chair. As Nakamura begged to stop, Styles relented. Seizing the moment, Nakamura retaliated with a "low blow". Styles managed to get back on his feet at the count of eight. At ringside, Nakamura performed another "kinshasa" on Styles, who recovered at the ninth count. Styles then performed a "phenomenal forearm" off a broadcast table on Nakamura and followed it immediately with a "Styles clash" off the steel steps, with Nakamura standing at the ninth count. In the end, Styles performed another "phenomenal forearm" on Nakamura through one of the broadcast tables. Nakamura could not stand up by the tenth count, thus Styles won the fixture.
The eighth match featured Nia Jax defending the Raw Women's Championship against Ronda Rousey. Jax initially dominated by tossing Rousey across the ring twice and applying the "Samoan Drop". As Rousey countered with a "Kimura lock", Jax overcame it and slammed Rousey with a "sitout powerbomb". As Jax went for another "sitout powerbomb", Rousey used the "hurricanrana throw", but Jax caught and dropped her for a two count. Rousey came back by applying the "armbar" over the ropes on Jax and performed a "crossbody block" for a two count. As Rousey was applying another "armbar" on Jax, Alexa Bliss appeared and attacked Rousey with her Money in the Bank briefcase causing a disqualification. Jax was disqualified, but retained her title. Bliss further attacked Rousey and Jax and then cashed in her Money in the Bank contract and performed a "Bliss DDT" and "twisted Bliss" in succession to win the title for a third time.

Main event

The main event was the men's Money in the Bank ladder match involving Braun Strowman, Finn Bálor, The Miz, Rusev, Bobby Roode, Kevin Owens, Samoa Joe, and one member of The New Day, revealed to be Kofi Kingston. All of the participants immediately attacked Strowman at the start of the fixture, and buried him underneath a pile of ladders. Each one vied for the ladder with The Miz going first before Kingston landed a "trouble in paradise" on him. Owens performed a "superkick" on Kingston only to be knocked out by a "double foot stomp" from Bálor.
Strowman recovered midway through the bout and attacked Bálor and Kingston. Joe, Owens, and Rusev together temporarily subdued Strowman and placed him on a table, with Owens climbing a large ladder adjacent to the tables to leap unto Strowman. Strowman broke free, climbed the ladder, and threw Owens through the table himself. Joe then attacked Strowman with a ladder and clotheslined him over the top rope. Bálor then dropkicked Strowman but was subsequently interrupted by Joe. Rusev and Joe then fight it out with each applying "the accolade" and the "Coquina clutch" respectively on one another. Rusev gets the better of Joe with a "superkick" and climbs the ladder. The Miz then topples the ladder causing Rusev to fall. The Miz was then confronted by Kingston and trade blows while on opposite sides of the ladder. Roode then knocked both The Miz and Kingston over and proceeded to ascend the ladder. Bálor interfered by kicking Roode and executed a "coup de grâce" off a ladder outside the ring.
In the climax, Bálor ascended the ladder and attempted to get the briefcase, only to be stopped by Strowman, who pulls him off. Strowman then performed "running powerslams" on both Miz and Joe. Bálor and Strowman ascended the opposite ends of the ladder placed below the Money in the Bank contract briefcase, Kingston jumped onto Strowman's back. Strowman pushed both the wrestlers off and retrieved the briefcase, therefore winning the match.

Results