411 Roundtable Preview: WWE Money in the Bank 2015

Introduction

This year’s Money in the Bank features two ladder matches, of course the Money in the Bank Ladder Match, which features seven WWE Superstars vying for a contract. However, we also have the WWE World Heavyweight title being contested in a Ladder match as well. Could Dean Ambrose walk away with the championship for real this time? I guess we have to wait and see. One of the matches everyone will be anticipating is the rematch between Kevin Owens and John Cena. This one provides intrigue because it could go a myriad of ways and WWE could decide on a result that we aren’t considering. Then there’s also New Day defending the Tag Team Titles against Primetime Players, Nikki Bella defending the Divas Title against Paige, RyBack defending the Intercontinental Title against Big Show and more. So, what’s going to happen when WWE presents Money in the Bank 2015 live at 8ET/5p on PPV and the WWE Network? Let’s go ahead and find out what the 411 staff think could happen.

The Staff

Scott Rutherford,

Kevin Pantoja, WWE NXT Reporter, Wrestling Video Reviewer

Michael Weyer, Shining a Spotlight

Eric Palmer, WWE SmackDown Reporter

Mike Hammerlock, The Wrestling Zone 8-Ball

Sean Garmer, Wrestling 2 the MAX Podcast, WWE Roundtable Organizer, Games Top 5 Organizer, Co-operative Multiplayer Podcast,

R-Truth vs. King Barrett
Pre-Show Kickoff Singles Match

Scott Rutherford: I want one good reason for me to care about this match. Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Anyone?
**flips coin**

Winner: R-Truth

Kevin Pantoja: Why is this happening? Seriously, this is no real reason. As much as they like to job out Barrett, he wins here.

Winner: King Barrett

Michael Weyer: I don’t care. I just…I just can’t….

Winner: King Barrett

Eric Palmer: This will be a match. I don’t know why, but here it is.

Winner: King Barrett

Mike Hammerlock: Well, you can see how illustrious it is win King of the Ring. That’ll and a winning smile will get you work on the pre-show. I’m not sure why we’re supposed to care about this match. To borrow from baseball terminology, it’s pretty clearly designed to get Barrett some work in a low leverage situation.

Winner: King Barrett

Sean Garmer: Well, all I can say is I hope Truth wins, so we can completely just go ahead and say that the King of the Ring is an utter joke.

Winner: Truth (Via Lie Detector)

(Champions) New Day vs. Primetime Players
WWE Tag Team Championship Match

Scott Rutherford: I like this combo of the New Day as working champions. Xavier Woods is a decent worker and the best promo of the group. Big E is the giant ass kicker. The only concern I have for this match is that the Prime Time Players have next to no heat and no expectation of winning. New Day works best with a good babyface team to work off and TPT ain’t it. The one joker in the pack is how much the New Day pump up their shtick and get the crowd against them. If they can generate a decent amount of heat and work a match were they seem in legit danger of losing, it may be OK.

Winner: New Day

Kevin Pantoja: You have no idea how happy it makes me to see Xavier Woods and Big E team up here. I enjoy Kofi Kingston in the team but these are the two guys that have been nailing the New Day gimmick best. It’s also something we haven’t seen much of, so I appreciate that. The last few Pay-Per-Views, I’ve stated that I didn’t expect them to drop the titles because they’ve been so good in their roles. I didn’t see them losing the straps to the likes of Tyson Kidd and Cesaro or the Lucha Dragons and I really don’t see it happening to the Prime Time Players here. There has barely been any build. Maybe down the road they can win it, but not here.

Winner: New Day

Michael Weyer: Should be a good match but don’t see a title change coming. The New Day are really winning folks over with their antics and this should continue with them mixing it up with the Players, some good moves but in the end, some cheating lets the champs retain. Good but nothing too special.

Winners and STILL WWE Tag Team Champions: The New Day

Eric Palmer: Aside from Barrett/Truth, this is the match I’m least looking forward to. I don’t see a reason to think Prime Time Players pull it off, and I’m not even sure this will be a good match, but hopefully they can prove me wrong. New Day is winning this one.

Winners: The New Day

Mike Hammerlock: The outcome seems pretty obvious, and Freebird rules are officially in play (so hooray for that). The big question is can New Day continue to be the surprise hit of the WWE? Darren and Titus aren’t the most formidable opponents on paper, but they can work a solid match. Big E and Xavier Woods (filing the fairly large shoes of Kofi Kingston) are going to need to hook the audience and then stand out in the ring. I’m rooting for them because their recent success has brought more of a spotlight to the WWE tag division. Hopefully they keep earning the boss’ confidence.

Winner: New Day

Sean Garmer: Now with another great tag team down and Usos still on the mend, this could be a program that continues past Money in the Bank. All that being said, I hope these two teams get some time to showcase, but I think it is obvious that New Day is winning here.

Winners AND STILL WWE Tag Team Champions: New Day (After some kind of nefarious finish)

(Champion) Nikki Bella w/ Brie vs. Paige
WWE Divas Championship Match

Scott Rutherford: Dead zone match. I do not expect a miracle to happen in this match. Nikki wins because the WWE want to erase AJ Lee’s longevity reign off the books ASAP.

Winner: Nikki Bella

Kevin Pantoja: I am very happy that Naomi is out of the title picture. Nikki Bella and Paige have better chemistry than most of the Divas on the roster. They have a match on Raw and one on Main Event at the beginning of the year that were pretty good. This should be the best Divas match on PPV since WrestleMania, though that isn’t saying much. I suspect Nikki retains through Twin Magic or something. I see her breaking AJ’s record reign before Charlotte debuts and dethrones her.

Winner: Nikki Bella

Michael Weyer: Nikki’s winning me over more but just don’t see a title change here either. I guess it’ll be okay but seriously, more than past time to call up Charlotte or someone else from NXT to give the Divas some much-needed new blood to get excited about.

WINNER and STILL Divas Champion: Nikki

Eric Palmer: The Bellas turn heel and face more often than Big Show, this makes it hard for me to really get invested in them, seeing as I’m not sure what characters they’ll be trying to portray week to week. In ring wise, Nikki has improved tremendously since she came into WWE and has had a damn good match with Paige earlier this year. I hope they can do it again, but in the end, Nikki will retain in a match where the girls try too hard to match Sasha vs Becky with less time.

Winner: Nikki

Mike Hammerlock: The booking in the divas division is reaching new levels of erratic. Nikki Bella is a heel again? Sure, whatever. The good/evil alignments of the women in the WWE are etched in sand and wash away with the tide. It makes it hard to care when the characters are this inconsistent. I had been hopeful in previous months that the divas could pick up their match quality. That turned out to be false hope. Note to Sasha Banks – never leave NXT.

Winner: Nikki Bella

Sean Garmer: WWE’s booking of the Divas division has been so weird lately. It looked like Naomi was going to usher in a new movement for the Divas, but then she disappears along with Tamina. Paige is then set to face Nikki and they have the Bellas turn heel again to boot. Nikki and Paige have some chemistry, so maybe the match will be good. However, I think this result is also evident here too.

Winner AND STILL WWE Divas Champion: Nikki Bella (via Rack Attack)

Ryback vs. Big Show
WWE Intercontinental Championship Elimination Chamber Match

Scott Rutherford: In no world should Ryback be jobbing out this quickly. Which is exactly what the bookers will think and swerve us into making him drop the title. But it’s the Big Show and the bookers seem hell bent on him retaining zero credibility. Without any gimmicks, this match is destined to suck. However, if they let Ryback go out there and hand TBS his ass inside 3 minutes, it will likely not suck.

Winner: Ryback

Kevin Pantoja: Who let the Big Show back into the company? And who the hell put him in a title match? Granted, this should absolutely be here so Ryback can Shell Shock Big Show and keep the title, but still. This was the World Heavyweight Title match we should have gotten at WrestleMania 29. I know that on paper, this looks like it will be pretty bad, but I actually saw these two work a singles match live at NXT in Columbus. Guess what? It was solid. They hit each other hard and Ryback Shell Shocking him was impressive in person.

Winner: Ryback

Michael Weyer: Giving Ryback the belt was a surprise as it looks like WWE is trying to build him back up again. Thus, no way he jobs so soon and especially not to Show who belongs nowhere near a title match. Expect a “fight against all odds” before Ryback manages a big power move to pin Show and continue as champ, way too soon to lose it.

Winner and STILL Intercontinental Champion: Ryback

Eric Palmer: I hate that Ryback is the champion, but whatever, Big Show is only here to give Ryback a credible first defense. I also don’t like how they wasted the Shellshock to Big Show on a MizTV segment. Regardless, Ryback is winning in what should be an okay match.

Winner:Ryback

Mike Hammerlock: Show really does make Ryback look tiny. He’s a massive man, and his job here is to give the new an impressive looking win. We’ll see if this comes out more like Reigns-Show from Extreme Rules or more like Ryback-Kane from TLC. Hopefully it’s the former. If Ryback isn’t able to stage compelling matches what’s going to happen is a heel will come along who seems a lot more exciting than he is. Time for the Big Guy to pick up his game in the ring, especially with what has been the Worker’s Belt around his waist.

Winner: Ryback

Sean Garmer: Big Show is here to make RyBack look strong. However, I don’t know why you give away the Shellshock on RAW, I guess RyBack is gonna Shellshock Big Show through the announce table now. Regardless, I think it is a safe bet that RyBack retains here.

Winner AND STILL WWE Intercontinental Champion: RyBack

John Cena vs. Kevin Owens
Singles Match

Scott Rutherford: The right people seem to realize that Kevin Owens is potential money. Having him beat Cena again will permanently cement him as a main eventer. Also, the WWE is crying out for credible heels and here you have one, ready to go. I expect another great match, maybe some outside tomfoolery to go with it. My only fear is the Vince may feel he’s been booked into a corner and Cena simply can’t be beaten twice by someone other than Brock Lesnar and tries to get cute.

Winner: Kevin Owens

Kevin Pantoja: The match that everyone is looking forward to the most. Kevin Owens and John Cena had the best singles match on the main roster all year at Elimination Chamber. Owens beating Cena clean was fantastic. However, if he just loses here and loses the potential rematches, it’s all for naught. I think the best move is for Owens to win again here, cementing himself as a new top guy, especially if he drops the NXT Title on the 4th of July in Tokyo. Owens NEEDS to win here. But, I’ve said that before about Cena feuds with Bray Wyatt, Rusev, Wade Barrett, etc. I know that some people high up feel that Owens should win, but until I’m proven wrong, I’m going with Cena. I absolutely hope I’m wrong though.

Winner: John Cena

Michael Weyer: WWE actually did the right thing last month and let Owens go over Cena clean. Logically, Cena wins this time around but I didn’t think he would lose the first time and yet it happened. WWE obviously sees the money in Owens and his potential, no way even they ruin it this early with a loss. I’ll lean toward actual common sense of Owens winning once more to boost himself but expect a Joe encounter afterward to shake things up more. Still, just seeing Owens going over Cena again will be a fantastic move for the company.

Winner: Kevin Owens

Eric Palmer: We know what these two can do together. They have great chemistry together and will likely put on another Match of the Night performance. I really hope WWE is smart enough this time to realize that Owens needs to win clean again. I don’t know if they are, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed.

Winner: Kevin Owens

Mike Hammerlock: Why is this match happening? They just did it. Owens won clean. Instead of turning around and doing again a few weeks later, they ought to string it out to SummerSlam where we’d all be talking about Owens-Cena II. Seriously, imagine that. Imagine if they allowed the loss to stick in Cena’s craw for a bit and Owens to lord it over him? Doing the return bout now shows almost unforgivable impatience. Now let’s add in the sense of dread. This is lining up to be a repeat of the cycle that just left Rusev a marginalized husk of a man: an early win for the heel that Cena gets back three times over. Hopefully they’re cognizant of that and they’re going to play off that dread, taking this feud in another direction. Having Owens get run over by the Cena bulldozer in his first few months on the roster is not a recipe for success. Doesn’t mean they won’t do it.

Winner: John Cena

Sean Garmer: Even though I’m not a big fan of the quick rematch, the feud has continued to build well, but I think Kevin Owens is going to get another win here and put Cena against the wall to make things interesting.

Winner: Kevin Owens

Neville vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Sheamus vs. Kane vs. Randy Orton vs. Roman Reigns vs. Kofi Kingston
Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Scott Rutherford: Well, you certainly have the cattle in this match to put on a good outing. If nothing else, Kingston, Ziggler and Neville will pull out the spectacular spots, Orton and Sheamus the savagery and Kane as the guy in there cause booking. It’s hard to have a bad ladder match in this situation and I don’t think this is going to be any different. Roman Reigns has to win because it opens up about 20 million booking options, about 15 million of those involve turning heel which seems to be the smart option right now. I wouldn’t be surprised if Kane helps as a pointer to him cashing in against the winner of the main event as gateway to turning heel.

Winner: Roman reigns

Kevin Pantoja: I have to admit, this is probably one of the weaker fields in the history of this match. What I mean by that, is that there isn’t a lot of potential when it comes to winners. Dolph Ziggler, Kane and Randy Orton aren’t winning one again. Kofi Kingston has no shot. I would like to see Neville, but I feel like he’s there to steal the show before moving onto a midcard title win. Sheamus is a small possibility, but Roman Reigns is pretty much the obvious choice. The match should be relatively fun despite the rather obvious outcome.

Winner: Roman Reigns

Michael Weyer: Some good talent here and sure Kofi will steal the show with some wild moves while Sheamus gets a boost too. However, pretty obvious how they’re setting it up with Reigns to win the briefcase. It should be a good match overall with various spots but we know how it will end as Reigns winning to set up a chase of Rollins is the obvious move and it might give him a better reaction with crowds this time out to make the pay-off for the belt much better.

Winner: Roman Reigns

Eric Palmer: I would love to see Kofi win here. I think Kofi has been underutilized in his career and could have been a main event guy in 2009. Unfortunately, that was six years ago, and Kofi’s time has passed. I don’t think Neville is a main event caliber talent just yet, and seeing Sheamus or Orton with the briefcase would just be awful. Roman is the clear favorite here and for good reason, he’s taking the briefcase.

Winner: Roman Reigns

Mike Hammerlock: Did a poll last week asking whether Reigns should win MITB and nearly 80% of the respondents said yes. That’s partially because there isn’t another obvious winner here. Orton, Ziggler and Kane have all won MITB in the past. Ziggler is the only one of those who’d seem like he could take another MITB bounce somewhere interesting at this time. Sheamus has enough of a resume that he doesn’t need MITB to get his chances, though it is one of the few things he hasn’t won. It’s a little early in his run for Neville to win the briefcase. The crowd popped big time for Kofi’s near win at MITB last year and he’d be a fascinating pick. It would remove the glass ceiling under which he’s operated, but that’s a long shot. The whole thing has been set up as Roman Reigns’ express lane back to the main event. Nothing wrong with that as there’s lots of good stories to tell with Reigns winning MITB. Expect a rapid cash-in from him, maybe even Sunday night.

Winner: Roman Reigns

Sean Garmer: There are people that are contemplating that Kofi could win here because he has that match with Brock in Japan. However, this seems pretty much setup for Roman Reigns to win and I think he will do just that.

Winner: Roman Reigns

(Champion) Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose
WWE World Heavyweight Championship Ladder Match

Scott Rutherford: I hope this is a good match. It should be since they’ve always managed to at least be entertaining. While I get the purpose of J&J Security I do think they book them to interfere almost out of obligation to do so. I hope they’re taken out of the match early or they only interfere right at the end and it costs Rollins the match. Then Roman Reigns cashes in on Ambrose, turns heel as champion and we’re on our way.

Winner: Dean Ambrose then loses to Roman Reigns via MiTB cash-in

Kevin Pantoja: Since WrestleMania, this has been the hardest title match to figure out. You see, I don’t really think Seth Rollins’ run as Champion should end so soon, but I also have seen the way he’s been booked lately and it hasn’t been good. On the other hand, I don’t think they are ready to give Dean Ambrose the title and have him run with it, but I sense they may go the shocking route. He wins and Roman Reigns, who wins Money in the Bank earlier, cashes in on him. I’m not sure if they’re ready to turn to Reigns heel either, but I’m going with the fun prediction.

Winner: Dean Ambrose then Reigns cashes in

Michael Weyer: The stuff of Ambrose carrying the belt around has been damn fun and should spark an even better battle over the title. It’s easy to think of Ambrose winning then Reigns going heel to cash in and win the belt himself and would be damn great. However, I just don’t see Rollins’ reign ending just yet, be more fun for him to retain as I really see a SummerSlam battle ahead of us. Some back and forth in a good battle but Rollins manages to get his belt back while setting up a final battle at SummerSlam and should be a great brawl to watch.

Winner and STILL WWE World Heavyweight Champion: Seth Rollins

Eric Palmer: Amborse carrying around the WWE World Heavyweight Championship has been great to watch and very entertaining. That said, he’s not winning the belt Sunday. This feud so far has made Rollins look incredibly weak and losing clean at Money in the Bank would be detrimental to his development and provide one of the weaker championship reigns in recent memory. I think these guys will have a great match, as they have fantastic chemistry together, but Rollins is walking out with the belt.

Winner: Seth Rollins

Mike Hammerlock: Seth Rollins carried the MITB briefcase as well as anyone in history and set a new bar for cash-in awesomeness. Since then the WWE has seemingly gone out of its way to castrate him. Losing the belt right now would be a mercy to him, allowing Rollins to move on to a new phase where maybe he can win back some dignity. Technically, Ambrose is the champ. He won at Elimination Chamber and generally that means it’s just a matter of time until he’s able to make his champion status official. It’s hard to argue that anyone else should get a shot until Ambrose gets his just reward. Also, it’s hard to imagine Ambrose being the kind of dog who let’s go of this particular bone. The good thing about an Ambrose win is that, coupled with Reigns getting the MITB briefcase, it opens the door for all three former Shield mates to become WWE champ in short order and to ratchet their interpersonal drama up another level.

Winner: Dean Ambrose

Sean Garmer: I know this idea of Reigns cashing-in on Ambrose and then turning sounds great. However, I just can’t see WWE being that logical. Seth Rollins will probably retain with someone new helping Rollins in a weird way to make it easier for him to climb the ladder and solidify himself as the champion.

Winner AND STILL WWE World Champion: Seth Rollins

Overall Thoughts & PPV Interest Level (from 1 being the worst to 5 being the best)

Kevin Pantoja: My interest level for this PPV is a 3: Usually, the Money in the Bank Pay-Per-View delivers, even if the card doesn’t seem like it will. I don’t think this will be one of the best Money in the Bank events ever, but it should be fun. Owens/Cena, MITB and Ambrose/Rollins all have potential to steal the show. The Divas and Tag matches should be decent too.

Michael Weyer: My interest level for this PPV is a 3: Cena/Owens should be another brilliant match and the main event is promising too. The big thing is if we see a MITB cash-in so soon but whoever gets the briefcase drives storylines for a while so that will probably be the case again. Otherwise, a so-so card aside from those bouts as we enter a “filler period” for the company but still some potential to surprise.

Eric Palmer: My interest level for this PPV is a 3: Cena vs Owens and Rollins vs Ambrose are the only reasons I’m looking forward to this match. I might be more excited for the Money in the Bank match if I could believe anybody besides Roman were winning it. That said, the card doesn’t look terrible, but it looks far from a great show. WWE has surprised me in the past, so maybe they’ll do it again, but I won’t hold my breath.

Mike Hammerlock: My interest level for this PPV is a 4: This show could be epic. We could see a double title switch and Kevin Owens stomping on John Cena’s mystique. If they do that, MITB probably pushes itself into contention for show of the year. However, when you’re on that kind of high wire, you also can fall off and leave nothing but a giant splat. My hope is that Rollins and Ambrose finally get to have the classic we all think they can stage. That would erase any slower moments from the preliminaries. Anyway, after a number of disposable events, it feels like MITB could be a night where important stuff happens.

Sean Garmer: My interest level for this PPV is a 5: This should be a fantastic show. Owens vs. Cena will deliver, Rollins vs. Ambrose will too, we know the MITB match is usually a good deal and the undercard could be decent. I’ll just be glad to get back to the monthly schedule of PPV’s. We do a regular Thursday episode of the Wrestling 2 the MAX podcast and then do a W2M special for these PPV’s. We’ve had to do too many podcasts lately and I’m beat.

Well, that is all for this month everyone. Don’t forget to leave us your thoughts and predictions below in the comments and we will see you again in a month for WWE Battleground.

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