The Great Eight: The Top 8 Money in the Bank Ladder Matches

Since its inception at WrestleMania 21, the Money in the Bank Ladder match has become one of my favorite matches every year. It’s probably third after the Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber. It has helped launch the careers of several wrestlers and create intrigue within the title scenes.

While I haven’t agreed with every winner, or the booking around them, in the lead-up to their cash-ins, the match itself has almost always been a fun match filled with crazy and athletic spots. Also, I just want to say, while it still isn’t as nice as the Network’s ability to skip directly to a match. Netflix’s fast forwarding is light-years better than Peacock’s. I can actually see what I’m skipping through, instead of blindly skipping.

So, let’s look at the top eight Money in the Bank Ladder matches over the last 20 years!

Fun Facts:

Of the 26 men who have won the Money in the Bank, only six have failed in their cash-in: John Cena, Damien Sandow, Baron Corbin, Braun Strowman, Austin Theory, and Drew McIntyre.

All eight women who have won the Money in the Bank have successfully cashed in on their contracts.

Carmelle holds the record, for both men and women, for waiting the longest to cash in at 287 days.

Kane holds the record for waiting, for both men and women, for waiting the least amount of time at 49 minutes.

Carmella is the only woman to win the Money in the Bank twice. Seth Rollins and CM Punk are the only men to win it twice, with Punk being the only person to do it in back-to-back years.

Kane & Kofi Kingston are tied for most appearances at seven each.

Plugs

I don’t use social media, but you can follow me on Spotify, where you’ll find playlists covering every decade from the 1950s to the 2000s. As well as several genre-specific playlists.

Disclaimer:

This is my list; if you don’t like it or have a different list, awesome! Please share your own list and opinions in the comments section. I welcome open discourse about this wacky art we all love. It is an art form, so it is subjective; we all have our opinions on it, and all of them are valid. So, if you want to share your thoughts and opinions, don’t insult others for their opinion. There is already enough negativity in the world; let’s not add to it. And with that, on to the list!

The List:

Honorable Mentions:

Both the Men’s and Women’s 2020 matches, WrestleMania XXVI, Money in the Bank 2013 – World Heavyweight Championship, and WrestleMania 22

8: Money in the Bank 2019 – Women’s Championship

(Bayley, Dana Brooke, Ember Moon, Mandy Rose, Naomi, Natalya, and Nikki Cross)

Man, I miss Nikki Cross in the ring. She is so underrated and has such a different style than everyone else. Hopefully, they decide to plug her into the anemic Women’s United States Championship scene soon. Everyone holds their own here; even Brooke and Rose do a good job. One of the booking issues with the early Women’s Money in the Bank matches was always having someone who wasn’t ready for the spot.

Naomi looked great in the match, getting to do some of the more creative spots. Moon showed why she deserved so much more in the WWE and really deserves to be on the weekly AEW shows. She is another vastly underrated wrestler. But of course, this whole match was the Bayley show; the pop she gets when she wins is huge. The crowd was fully behind her plucky underdog role, and she more than deserved the win here.

7: Money in the Bank 2011- SmackDown

(Daniel Bryan, Cody Rhodes, Heath Slater, Justin Gabriel, Kane, Sheamus, Sin Cara, and Wade Barrett.)

This match was a bunch of new talent and Kane. Kane actually worked well as the veteran voice here. Playing his normal role as a powerhouse and a base to bounce off of. One of the fun parts of rewatching all these matches was seeing the metamorphosis of guys like Cody and Drew McIntyre. This match made me wish Justin Gabriel had come along 5-6 years later. Getting to watch a prime Gabriel in the Triple H ran NXT would have been awesome.

Sin Cara was ultimately a failed experiment, but he was fun to watch when he stayed healthy, and props to him for taking that big bump through the ladder. Barrett is one of my biggest what-ifs? If he had stayed healthy, there was no reason he wouldn’t have won the World Championship. He had all the tools to get to the top.

This was all about Daniel Bryan, though. It’s crazy that despite start and stop booking, Bryan was so over and stayed over. He was the guy who wasn’t supposed to get over. The world-travelled technical master, who was too small and lacked charisma. But here he is on his way to his first World Championship.

6: Money in the Bank 2013 – WWE Championship Contract

(Randy Orton, Christian, CM Punk, Shelton Benjamin, Rob Van Dam, and Sheamus)

This is an interesting match, in that it was an all-star match. There wasn’t any up-and-coming talent; everyone here was established in some form or fashion. Shelton Benjamin is the only one who wasn’t a former World Champion. This match is also less about big spots and more of a brutal match. RVD and Benjamin still had moments to shine with their spots, but it was much more of a fight. Speaking of, this is RVD’s return to the company, so the crowd was behind him 100%, and that just added to the atmosphere of the match.

5: WrestleMania 21

(Edge, Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, Christian, Kane, and Shelton Benjamin)

The one that started it all. There is a specific spot here that has not aged well. But aside from that, this was a great blueprint for every Money in the Bank to follow. You have six hungry guys who are going all out to show why they deserve a shot. Three of them had never been to the top before, and they were ready to destroy themselves and each other to get there.

Shelton Benjamin was the early highlight for the first few years. Always finding creative ways to use the ladder as a weapon and a launching pad. Kane was the power base for the others to bump around. Christian was a few months away from going to TNA and proving he could carry a company. And then there is Edge.

We had watched Edge come up from the goth guy hanging in the crowd, to the Brood, Five-Second Poses, neck surgery, and a real-life love triangle. He had put in his dues and was more than deserving of this shot at the top. It was so cathartic to watch him finally get a shot. And the way he used it to elevate himself and reinvent himself was beautiful.

4: WrestleMania XXIV

(CM Punk, Carlito, Chris Jericho, John Morrison, MVP, Mr. Kennedy, and Shelton Benjamin)

Much like I said about Daniel Bryan, it’s crazy how over Punk was from the start. He had a strong run in ECW, which helped, but fans took to him quickly and have never really stopped. This match is filled with such wasted potential. Carlito and Kennedy kind of got in their own way, but Morrison, Benjamin, and MVP could have done a lot more if they were given a shot.

Much like the first Money in the Bank, this is a match filled with young guys going out there with something to prove. They put their all into the match, and it paid off big time. Morrison and Benjamin compete for who can pull out the most creative spots, Kennedy and MVP bring some of the power game, and Jericho plays the veteran voice.

This match was all about the coronation of Punk; the crowd is firmly behind him and pops huge for his win. It establishes him as a main event talent, and while he would have some ups and downs, he was never far from the main event again.

3: Money in the Bank 2021 – Men’s

(Big E, Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Drew McIntyre, Kevin Owens, King Nakamura, and Seth Rollins)

This match is great, filled with a lot of great spots. Ricochet brings the creative and athletic action, pulling off dives like only he can. Owens is low-key one of my favorite wrestlers for ladder matches. He does so many little things and is creative in his own way. Instead of doing jumps and dives off ladders. He is finding new ways to use them to hurt people. Also, a Hidden Highlight for the match. Owens is selling outside, and Ricochet gets tossed out of the ring by McIntyre. Owens doesn’t skip a beat, grabbing Ricochet and bouncing him off the barrier while still selling.

Like Edge, Big E was a guy we had watched from the beginning. Going from the top of NXT, to Ziggler’s muscle, to the big goofy guy in New Day. Big E had long shown he had the skills, charisma, and look to be at the top. And 2021 was the year the company finally got behind him. Sadly, his in-ring career would be done less than a year later. Because without that broken neck, I think Big E would have been a multi-time World Champion by now.

2. Money in the Bank 2024 – Men’s

(Drew McIntyre, Andrade, Carmelo Hayes, Chad Gable, Jey Uso, and LA Knight)

With my top two being from 2024, I’m sure some of you will claim recency bias. But I want to point out that 1. I have seen every one of these matches as they happened, and also went back and watched them all to prepare for this article. With that said, I think 2024 had both of the top two matches. Gable really made the men’s match. And I think his performance here helped to raise his stock in the company.

He pulls out creative spots, like German Suplexing a ladder onto Carmelo Hayes, and brutal ones like a Belly-to-Belly over the top to a suspended ladder. He also takes some brutal spots. LA Knight’s neckbreaker onto the ladder was sick. The biggest spot was the assisted Sunset Fip Powerbomb done by Andrade onto Hayes through the ladder.

While McIntyre was the most likely winner, there were a lot of false finishes here that made you believe guys like Knight, Uso, and Gable could win. Also gods damn is Knight over here.

1: Money in the Bank 2024 – Women’s

(Tiffany Stratton, Chelsea Green, IYO SKY, Lyra Valkyria, Naomi, and Zoey Stark)

The women in this match saw how good the men’s match was and said, “Hold my beer.” This is just a car crash from the moment the bell rings. All the women put themselves through hell and back to prove they deserved the main event for this show. Stark is highly underrated and shows why with all her power spots. Valkyria showed up to work, and her work here probably went a long way in her becoming the first Women’s Intercontinental Champion.

The slam from Stark to Valkyria on the ladder was brutal. And then SKY hits the modified Michinoku Driver on Stark through a ladder to one-up it. Green takes the big bump off the ladder and through the tables on the outside. Speaking of Green, the crowd loves her, popping huge for all her offense, and when she almost gets the case.

Naomi once again gets a lot of creative spots. I like her throwing punches while doing the splits between two ladders. At the end of the day, this match is all Tiffy Time. The crowd is fully behind her. And she gets to showcase her athleticism, hitting a beautiful swantop off the top to the outside.

I know most of you probably won’t agree with this placement. But having just rewatched every Money in the Bank, this is probably one of the best examples of putting over a new star, brutal moments, creative uses of the ladder, and athletic spots.

Preview:

Tune in next week when we look at the top eight Overlooked PG Era Wrestlers!