This Sunday, the WWE will put on their ninth annual Money in the Bank “pay-per-view” event live from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois.
This year, the card is headlined by two Money in the Bank matches for the men and women with eight competitors in each.
For those unfamiliar, whatever superstar reaches the top of the ladder and securely brings down the briefcase is guaranteed a title shot at any time and any place over the course of a full calendar year.
Looking at last years winners, Baron Corbin and Carmella, only Carmella was successful in her cash-in attempt and she’ll be competing on the card, defending the Smackdown Live! Women’s Championship against Asuka.
On the contrary, Corbin lost his opportunity after he cashed in on Jinder Mahal back in August of last year after Mahal rolled Corbin up following him punching John Cena off the apron.
It was one of the more humiliating failed cash-ins—Corbin definitely did something to rub the WWE brass the wrong way.
Below, we’ll look at the odds for each match and determine a winner based on odds provided by BetDSI.com.
Let’s start with the women.
Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Courtesy of WWE.com
Women’s Money in the Bank Odds to Win
Charlotte Flair +250
Natalya +350
Ember Moon +450
Alexa Bliss +500
Sasha Banks +750
Becky Lynch +750
Naomi +1000
Lana +1250
Out of all the women in the match, Charlotte is by far the most accomplished. And at +250, the oddsmakers seem to think she’ll pull this off as well.
However, if I’m the WWE, I’d go with Natalya at +350 to go over here and cash in the same night, assuming Ronda Rousey is booked to beat Nia Jax.
It should be noted Rousey is a substantial favorite over the incumbent champion.
Of course, the cash-in would need to be booked in a way that makes Rousey still look strong.
For example, Rousey could go over and then be attacked by the Riott Squad from behind.
Then, Natalya could run to the ring, briefcase in hand and the commentary team can put over the idea of her cashing in.
However, Natalya and the WWE will be in a prime spot to swerve the audience and Natalya could come down, protect her friend, check on her to make sure she’s OK, then raise her hand up while she holds the belt and she can hold her briefcase.
Then, we get the heel turn. Natalya could turn around and peg Rousey with the briefcase, cash-in and go over Rousey leading to a program that would culminate in Natalya losing at SummerSlam.
Again, this is all with the idea that Rousey wins her match and you cannot book her to look like a weakling.
Remember, in a shoot fight, Rousey would absolutely annihilate all of these women, so WWE needs to keep that in mind and make sure the reality stays with the situation.
Men’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Courtesy of WWE.com
Men’s Money in the Bank Odds to Win
Braun Strowman +350
The Miz +500
Rusev +500
Samoa Joe +700
Finn Balor +700
Kevin Owens +950
Big E +1000
Kofi Kingston +1250
Bobby Roode +1500
Xavier Woods +1500
Currently, we’re not sure which member of The New Day will be in the match.
If it’s Big E, this could be a great point in WWE programming to launch Big E into that main event picture and leave The New Day behind.
While The New Day sells a ton of merchandise and caters to the kids in the audience and at home, the gimmick is old and tired and it needs a shake-up.
Remember, they can still keep Woods and Kingston in a tag team.
With that said, I don’t see WWE doing that, so the next best option, I think, is The Miz at +500.
Strowman is the easy choice here, as he is favorited by the oddsmakers. However, Strowman is over to the moon and back at this point and losing this match wouldn’t hurt him, considering there are seven other competitors vying for the briefcase.
Traditionally, the briefcase makes sense for a heel or someone with heelish qualities—who better than The Miz on Smackdown Live!?
We’d finally be able to put an end to this AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura program and, assuming Styles retains, a program of Styles and Miz could be entertaining.
Word of advice WWE—just let those two guys work the segments on their own. The creative team would absolutely botch it.
Strowman is a monster and he’ll always be around. Giving the briefcase to Miz over guys like Samoa Joe and Kevin Owens will also make the marks in the crowd heated, allowing for more heat on Miz.
Depending on the card structure, maybe that night, in a Last Man Standing match, would be a prime opportunity for a cash-in as well.
Either way, Strowman stays strong no matter what and Miz gets another shot in the spotlight and will garner plenty of heat for winning.
However, it would be nice to see WWE move away from New Day, but it’s hard to envision that happening.
So, to recap, my predicted winners for each Money in the Bank Ladder Match is Natalya (+350) and The Miz (+500).
Richard Janvrin extensively covers WWE. While he may have issues with wrestling today, he's been a fan of professional wrestling since he was toddling around, breaking tables and searching for glimmers of the Attitude Era, as a 4-year old.
