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The 411 Wrestling Top 5: The Top 5 MITB Cash-Ins

July 26, 2015 | Posted by Larry Csonka

The 411 Wrestling Top 5: Hello everyone and welcome to 411 Wrestling’s Top 5 List. We take a topic each week and all the writers here on 411 wrestling will have the ability to participate and give us their Top 5 on said topic. So, onto this week’s topic…

Week 317 – Top 5 The Top 5 MITB Cash-Ins

What have been the best Money in the Bank cash-ins?

Kevin Pantoja
5. The Miz on Randy Orton in November 2010; Raw – When John Morrison and the Miz split, I was in the small group of people that knew Miz was going to be a bigger star and I am happy to say that I was right. In 2010, I was completely in on the Miz train. I loved his work as the United States Champion, as part of Show-Miz and with the briefcase. When he finally cashed in on Raw, it is something I remember clearly. He had talked so much about guaranteeing to become Champion that I was worried he’d cash in and lose, especially when he did so against Randy Orton, who wasn’t in as bad shape as some of the other victims of cash ins. But they worked a short match, and Miz was able to win. The booking of his reign was shit, thanks to playing third wheel at WrestleMania and the awful Jerry Lawler, but Miz deserved this moment.

4. Dolph Ziggler on Alberto Del Rio in April 2013; Raw – Another case of a guy with a post cash in reign that disappointed but the actual cash in was phenomenal. At the time, I was a big Dolph Ziggler fan and badly wanted him to win the World Title. He had just finished going over John Cena on Pay-Per-View to retain it, but I was upset to see him in a Tag Title match at WrestleMania. 24 hours later, he cashed in on Alberto Del Rio in front of one of the hottest crowds in history. The pop for his arrival and eventual title win is unmatched among cash ins. The short match with Del Rio was good and I loved his counter to the Cross Armbreaker. Special moment and it’s unfortunate that his concussion derailed his run.

3. CM Punk on Jeff Hardy in June 2009; Extreme Rules – Another personal favorite of mine right here. Based on shock factor, I think I enjoyed his first cash in better. However, it was still stunning that a face CM Punk cashed in on Jeff Hardy after a grueling ladder match. Unlike the previous two cash ins I listed, this one solidified Punk as a top guy. He and Jeff went on to have a great feud over the title. While the WWE still mishandled Punk at different times until he promo in Las Vegas, this changed things for him. It showed that his first win wasn’t a fluke and set the stage for heel Punk, which was always my favorite.

2. Seth Rollins on Brock Lesnar in March 2015; WrestleMania 31 – Man, I was very close to putting this at the top of the list. Cashing in during the main event of WrestleMania is a ballsy move, especially when the two guys at war were Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns. Seth is another guy that I’ve been a huge fan of, since his days as Tyler Black in the Age of the Fall and Do It For Her. Seeing him leave WrestleMania with the top belt was an incredible feeling. The cash in was tremendous, perfectly timed and done by the right guy. Again, the WWE hasn’t booked his reign perfectly, but it doesn’t take away from the cash in.

1. Edge on John Cena in January 2006; New Year’s Revolution – Here we have a case of the original being the best. Unfortunately, I missed this moment live. It was at a time when I didn’t care to order all 13 or 14 Pay-Per-Views the WWE was producing. I recall asking my friend at school the next day who won at the PPV and he said Edge. It confused me as, at the time, I still expected him to cash in for an actual match instead of when Cena was down. I’ve gone back and watched this countless times and it never gets old. Edge was the perfect Mr. Money in the Bank. This changed the game and sent the “Ultimate Opportunist” into the next level.

Eric Palmer
5. Randy Orton on Daniel Bryan: Summerslam 2013 – Daniel Bryan was fresh off beating John Cena for the WWE Championship and it was an awesome moment. Until, of course, Triple H Pedigreed Bryan and Orton cashed in to win the belt. It gave The Authority some great heel heat and lead to one of the better title chases in recent memory.

4. Dolph Ziggler on Alberto Del Rio: RAW, April 8th, 2012 – Ziggler was over BIG TIME during his run as Mr. Money in the Bank, and every time he tried to cash in the arena erupted. I believe this was the night after WrestleMania, and Del Rio had be assaulted by Jack Swagger after a match. This was a case of an ultimate underdog story coming to life and the fans ate it up. It’s too bad that a concussion cut his reign short, but this is still easily one of the best cash ins based on fan reaction alone.

3. CM Punk on Jeff Hardy: Extreme Rules 2009 – This is the cash in that really launched CM Punk as a credible main eventer. It came after Jeff Hardy won a ladder match against Edge, about a year after Punk cashed in to win the same belt from Edge himself. This not only legitimized Punk as a rising star, but it launched one of his best feuds in career against Jeff Hardy.

2. Edge on John Cena: New Years Resolution 2006 – The first is always a memorable one. This cash in came at a perfect time, right after Cena had successfully defended his championship in an elimination chamber match. It took two spears to do it, but Edge dethroned the champion to launch the Ultimate Opportunist’s career to new heights.

1. Seth Rollins on Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns: WrestleMania 31 – Seth Rollins was somebody people expected to cash in after the main event was over, but nobody really expected him to cash in during the actual match itself. Rollins shocked everybody by leaving WrestleMania as the champion, a move that got the title off Lesnar without having to have him eat a pinfall. It was a fantastic way to book the cash in and was easily the best Money in the Bank cash-in to date.


Seth Rollins Cashes his Money in the bank WM31 by JNoLimits

MICHAEL WEYER
5. The Miz on Randy Orton, 2010 I know, we all hate Miz and his reign wasn’t that good. But the cash-in was still pretty well done as Orton had just defeated Wade Barrett in a bout after being attacked by the Nexus. When Miz’s music hit, Orton had a fantastic “aaaah, dammit” expression as Miz raced down with the briefcase. The match was actually longer than most cash-in bouts with Orton doing well to handle things before Miz reversed an RKO attempt into a Skull-Crushing Finale for the pin. We were then treated to one of the single most famous fan reactions of all time, the priceless shot of the little girl with a look of utter disgust on her face that’s become a go-to meme for wrestling fans. So maybe not popular but that shot alone puts this on a list of major cash-in moments.

4. Dolph Ziggler on Alberto Del Rio, 2012 Folks had been expecting Ziggler to cash in for a while and he’d made a few attempts. But it finally paid off as an injured Del Rio was in the ring when Ziggler’s music hit and the crowd (already hot) just exploded as he came out. The match was short with Del Rio managing to kick out of one pin attempt but Ziggler got the pin and the title in order to win the belt and kick off a frenzied reaction. A shame it was cut short but still a great moment that reminded you why it all works.

3. Seth Rollins on Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns, WrestleMania 31 The move that basically saved the Mania main event as most fans were expecting Rollins to cash in after the bout, just waiting through it to see it happen. But almost no one expected that, with both guys down, Rollins would come out to cash in and turn the bout into a triple threat match. It’s a nice turn on the MITB formula and it worked as he won the belt to a huge ovation and ended the show in a great way while elevating him to true stardom. The latest but still one of the best.

2. CM Punk on Edge, 2008 I know most will cite Punk cashing in on Hardy but I prefer this one. Edge had come out on RAW to do a big speech mocking Jim Ross and others and boasting of leaving for “SmackDown.” Batista came out to beat Edge down brutally, leaving him lying in the ring. Even for those hopeful, it was something huge when Punk’s music hit and he came out with a ref to hit a GTS and the pin for the belt. The crowd was going wild as Punk celebrated with the title, on top of the world at last. It was a great moment, better thanks to the delicious irony of Edge getting the exact same treatment he’d given Cena and Undertaker and still a highlight of Punk’s WWE tenure.

1. Edge on John Cena, New Year’s Revolution 2006 The first remains the best. Remember, they talked a big game about “cashing in” at any time but no one really got what that meant. Leave it to Edge to show it as, after Cena had won a brutal Elimination Chamber battle, he came out to cash in, spearing the bleeding and battered Cena to win the belt to a huge ovation. It launched him “the ultimate opportunist” and a true main-event star at last while also showcasing the “it can happen at any time” aspect of MITB that’s made it such a great thing.

Scott Rutherford
5. Rob Van Dam on John Cena – This is an anomaly cash in as RVD used it to nominate the time and place of the cash-in giving him a tremendous advantage. It’s a tool that should be used more often than the standard “cash in after the champ has been incapacitated” that we get with most of the time now. The match itself was great as the ECW crowd was out for Cena’s blood and Cena worked them like a pro. Very memorable night.

4. Seth Rollins on Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns – This was some clever booking here as the cash-in was used in a different way, turning a normal match into a three-way. This was made all the more effective because the never booked Rollins as a guy chasing a cash-in at every opportunity. He waited for the exact, right time. Very creative and certainly memorable.

3. Daniel Bryan on The Big Show – This is memorable for reasons of wrestling politics as it was about what happened in the ring. In Daniel Bryan’s new book he talks about how he was given the briefcase over the best judgment of Vince McMahon, who then panicked at the thought of Bryan being a World Champion, so he jobbed him out whenever he could. Then to show how inept the WWE booking can be, they booked Mark Henry vs. Big Show for TLC and couldn’t figure out an ending. Someone suggested Daniel Bryan cash-in, the idea was approved but then they realized the Bryan wasn’t actually on the card or in the building. By sheer chance, Bryan was doing an appearance in town and happened to have his gear. He rushed to the arena, got dressed and went out to cash-in. This is how much thought they put into Bryans win and eventual cash-in. Luckily, because Bryan is fucking awesome, he took this little crumb of a push and turned it into something the WWE couldn’t ignore. The wrestling business is really fucking weird.

2. The Miz on Randy Orton – As someone has already mentioned, the Miz’s title run was really shitty. Which is all the more insane when you consider he main evented a WrestleMania and won. Outside of that, the cash-in was pure gold. At the time, and what’s been forgotten since, was The Miz had worked really hard and was actually getting good traction as a chicken shit heel. His duo with Alex Riley was entertaining and being the briefcase holder was a good fit. The cash-in was glorious and the memorable look on one young girls face was the topping of awesome sauce that was needed.

1. Edge on John Cena – This was the original and template for almost every cash-in. A better way to describe it would be “proof of concept”. It was never explicitly stated that the briefcase could be used 24/7 although it was implied. So when Edge emerged after the Elimination Chamber and beat a thoroughly spent John Cena, it laid the groundwork for years to come. It also cemented Edge’s character making things like Rated-R Superstar, The Ultimate Opportunist and Live Sex Celebration part of the wrestling lexicon.

YOUR TURN KNOW IT ALLS

List your Top Five for this week’s topic in the comment section using the following format:

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