Rumors regarding Bryan Danielson and C.M. Punk heading to AEW broke on 7/21.
First, with Danielson, what was first reported by Cassidy Haynes of Bodyslam.net is that Danielson has signed with AEW, and that he would debut on the 9/22 show at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York. Bryan Alvarez also heard the same date for a debut for Danielson.
Nobody has been able to confirm the story but for such a major story, nobody has denied it either. Debuts for either or both would be something that the company would never confirm to begin with, and if the stories weren’t true, they’d be quick to deny them most likely.
For something at that level, one would think there would be a denial if there wasn’t something to the stories or at least something close because in a number of cases of reports of people on the verge of signing who were not, denials came quickly, particularly involving Punk, who has been quick to deny previous rumors. Punk even played into them by tweeting out the Alan Parsons Project song “Sirius” which is the theme song for the Chicago Bulls and AEW has looked to trademark the phrase “First Dance” which is an offshoot of “Last Dance,” the name of the heavily talked about 2020 ESPN mini-series of the heyday of the Bulls and Michael Jordan.
At the end of tonight’s Money in the Bank pay-per-view, John Cena made his return and kicked off the build to SummerSlam.
After Roman Reigns retained his Universal Championship against Edge in tonight’s main event, Reigns started to cut a promo before being interrupted by Cena. Cena made his entrance and then did the “You Can’t See Me” taunt in Reigns’ face. The show went off the air with Cena and Reigns in the ring.
Reigns vs. Cena for the Universal Championship is expected to be the main event of next month’s SummerSlam PPV. SummerSlam is taking place at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Saturday, August 21.
This was Cena’s first appearance on WWE programming since he faced “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt in their cinematic Firefly Fun House match at WrestleMania 36 last year. Cena had said in recent interviews that he’d definitely be returning to WWE, but he claimed that he didn’t know when he’d be making his return.
It was announced earlier this month that Cena will have a role in the spy thriller movie “Argylle.” The movie starts filming in Europe in August, but Dave Meltzer reported that Cena doing the movie won’t affect the plans for him to face Reigns at SummerSlam.
Edge vs. Seth Rollins also appears to be being built up for SummerSlam. Rollins got involved in tonight’s Reigns vs. Edge Universal Championship match. Edge and Rollins then brawled following the match.
At tonight’s Money in the Bank pay-per-view, Big E defeated Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Drew McIntyre, Kevin Owens, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Seth Rollins to win the men’s Money in the Bank ladder match. At the end of the match, Big E gave Rollins the Big Ending off a ladder and then climbed back up to retrieve the briefcase.
This was the first Money in the Bank ladder match that Big E has ever competed in. If Big E successfully cashes in for either the Universal Championship or WWE Championship, it will be the first World title reign of his career.
There were streaming issues on Peacock throughout the entrances for the men’s Money in the Bank ladder match. The issues were resolved as the match started. WWE posted a statement on the issues: “Peacock has resolved the issue. Users may need to exit and re-enter the stream.”
Charlotte Flair regained the Raw Women’s Championship at tonight’s WWE Money in the Bank event.
The finish came after Flair grabbed Ripley’s leg, inserted it into the steel steps, and repeatedly booted the steps, causing damage to the leg. Back in the ring, Flair then applied the figure eight leglock. After a few seconds, Ripley tapped out, giving Flair the win and the title.
This is Flair’s fifth reign with the Raw Women’s title. Along with her two NXT Women’s titles, one Diva’s title, and five SmackDown Women’s titles, she is now a thirteen time singles champion.
Flair has been feuding with Ripley since her return to WWE following WrestleMania 37, where she was unable to compete due to a positive COVID-19 test. The two competed at WrestleMania Backlash in a triple threat match, where Ripley retained the title after pinning Asuka. Flair and Ripley then had a singles match at Hell in a Cell in June, where Flair won by disqualification.
Nikki A.S.H. has won this year’s women’s Money in the Bank ladder match.
The finish to the match, which opened the pay-per-view, had all eight competitors climb three different ladders in an effort to reach the briefcase. As everyone was struggling for control, Nikki emerged from the fray and grabbed the briefcase to win the match. She left the ring and posed with the briefcase on top of a ladder near the stage as the rest of the competitors looked upset.
The other participants in the match included Alexa Bliss, Asuka, Naomi, Natalya, Tamina, Zelina Vega, and Liv Morgan.
On the June 21 episode of Raw, Nikki Cross introduced a new superhero-inspired gimmick and now goes under the name Nikki A.S.H., or Almost a Superhero, following wins over Charlotte Flair and Rhea Ripley. On last week’s Raw, she defeated Alexa Bliss, Asuka, and Naomi in a fatal four-way match, building momentum towards tonight’s match.
Date: July 18, 2021 Location: Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, TX
Show Recap —
KICK-OFF SHOW
Kayla Braxton hosts with Jerry Lawler, Booker T, JBL, and Peter Rosenberg. The crowd (those who have shown up so far) chanted “welcome back” as soon as they were introduced, and they all got their names chanted except for Rosenberg (the crowd chanted for Braxton when Rosenberg was introduced).
Sonya Deville joined them and they interviewed Liv Morgan (by video) about the Money in the Bank match. Morgan was practically in tears already speaking about the opportunity. Morgan said she had no other option than to win tonight.
Three of the four panelists picked Charlotte Flair to beat Rhea Ripley. All four picked AJ Styles and Omos to beat the Viking Raiders, and all four picked Bobby Lashley to beat Kofi Kingston.
They aired a video recap of Smackdown and the return of a live crowd. Braxton spoke about the reaction Edge received.
Miz and John Morrison busted in on the panel. The crowd was happy to see them and they chanted “Johnny drip stick.” Morrison admitted he was nervous for tonight but that was a good thing.
The Usos defeated Rey & Dominik Mysterio to win the Smackdown Tag Team Championships (11:26)
The crowd seems pumped to see anyone and everyone so far. They booed the Usos once they got the heat but part of the crowd chanted for them later, too.
Dominik tried a dive off the top rope but he was caught by both Usos and they swung him into the barricade. Rey made a hot tag and hit Jey with a seated senton off the top for two. Jimmy blind-tagged in and gave Rey a superkick and Samoan drop for two. Rey went for a 619 on Jey but Jimmy (not the legal man) jumped in the way and took the move instead.
This led to Jey hitting a splash for a close nearfall. That spawned a “this is awesome” chant. Jimmy dropped Rey face-first on the turnbuckle and Jey assisted him in making the cover (which the referee couldn’t see) for the pinfall win. So Jimmy pinned Rey.
The crowd popped for the title change. The match itself was fine.
MONEY IN THE BANK MAIN SHOW
The show started with a big fireworks display. The stage seems the same as the one used for Smackdown.
Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match: Nikki A.S.H. defeated Alexa Bliss, Asuka, Naomi, Natalya, Tamina, Zelina Vega and Liv Morgan (15:46)
Bliss, Naomi, Asuka, and Morgan seemed to get the best reactions coming out.
All of the women began fighting outside the ring as Bliss pranced around the ring. It seemed like she might use magic to grab the briefcase without climbing but Asuka attacked her. Everyone traded moves after that. Morgan tried quickly climbing the ladder as Tamina held it up but Tamina attacked both her and Vega.
Later in the match, Bliss “creepily” crawled up a ladder that had Morgan pinned in the corner. Natalya went after Bliss but Bliss no-sold it and laughed. Bliss and Vega found themselves on top of the ladder until Bliss hypnotized Vega and caused her to climb down the ladder. The crowd lightly groaned. Bliss tried climbing the ladder but Natalya powerbombed her.
Vega was lying face-first on a ladder platform and Naomi powerbombed Morgan on top of her. Naomi managed to hit a double stunner on Natalya and Tamina. She also slammed Nikki on a ladder and followed with a leg drop.
Vega jumped on Natalya’s back but Natalya managed to climb to the ladder anyway. Natalya began passing out as Vega tried grabbing the briefcase but Morgan knocked them down. Everyone brawled in the ring until they were knocked down by a flying Nikki.
Bliss gave Nikki her version of Sister Abigail but was stopped from climbing by Natalya and Tamina. Everyone buried Bliss under a pile of ladders, which the crowd booed.
Three ladders were set up in the ring and six women battled at the top (not Bliss). As they fought for position, Nikki ASH simply climbed above them (over Morgan) and grabbed the ladder because they weren’t paying enough attention. Nikki wins.
The crowd popped for the finish, which made Nikki look smart and everyone else look dumb. The match was about what you’d expect.
The Usos celebrated backstage. Roman Reigns said he was happy for them. They offered him the title belts and said, “for you,” but he told them, “hold on to them for me.” He advised them that winning the titles was the easy part. Reigns told Jey that he’s the reason he was there, then looked at Jimmy and said, “and you…” but didn’t follow up. A few people chucked as the camera zoomed in Jimmy’s face. Jey and Jimmy took turns sucking up to Reigns. He told them he was proud of them. (There were some brief “boring” chants as Reigns spoke to the Usos as well.)
Before the upcoming match, they decided to replay some footage from last year of the Viking Raiders and the Street Profits doing their competitions (bowling, basketball, axe throwing).
AJ Styles & Omos defeated The Viking Raiders to retain the Raw Tag Team Championships (12:56)
Omos started the match and knocked down both Viking Raiders but Ivar and Erik briefly gained control after Styles got in. There was a very cool spot where Omos launched Styles out of the ring and Styles wiped out Erik with a flying hurricanrana. The Raiders again gained control of Styles but Omos tagged in and slammed Ivar.
Erik and Ivar double-teamed Styles before knocking Omos from the apron. They gave Styles a combo springboard clothesline/German suplex for two. Styles fought off both guys and tagged in Omos. He press-slammed Ivar, which popped the crowd, for two.
Ivar fought off Styles before he and Erik took turns going after Omos. Erik brought Omos down to his knees with a dive as Styles went after Ivar in the ring. Ivar ducked a Phenomenal forearm and they gave him a Viking Experience, but Omos shoved Erik into Ivar to break up the cover.
There was a brief exchange that led to Omos giving Erik a tree slam for the pinfall win. The crowd was happy that the champs retained. (They chanted for Styles throughout the match.)
Kevin Patrick interviewed Drew McIntyre. He was thrilled to be back with the live crowd and he needed to win tonight. He had one last story to tell: he was kicking off heads tonight, climbing the ladder and winning the briefcase. (He seemed to get a mixed reaction but got more cheers the more he mentioned the name of the city.)
Bobby Lashley (w/MVP) defeated Kofi Kingston to retain the WWE Championship (7:37)
Lashley squashed Kingston.
Kingston (who entered alone) got a very good reaction coming out.
MVP held Kingston’s foot as the match started and Lashley went for a spear, but Kingston countered into a cover for a one count. Lashley quickly took over after that. Kingston tried fighting back but Lashley killed him with a spinebuster. Before the three-minute mark of the match, Lashley drove Kingston twice into the post.
The crowd chanted for Kingston as Lashley nailed a running forearm in the corner and followed with a flatliner. Lashley applied the Hurt Lock and Kingston seemed to be countering it but Lashley used his strength to toss him across the ring with a fallaway slam. Lashley hit another flatliner, followed by three consecutive Ron Simmons Dominators.
The crowd booed as Lashley taunted them. Lashley applied the Hurt Lock and Kingston appeared to tap. The referee called it. Lashley wins by submission.
Charlotte Flair defeated Rhea Ripley to win the Raw Women’s Championship (16:49)
Corey Graves noted that it’s been an especially long time for Charlotte wrestling in front of a live crowd because she didn’t compete at this year’s WrestleMania.
When the match started, the crowd chanted for Charlotte before chanting for Ripley. When they chanted for Ripley, Charlotte flipped off the crowd which caused the screen to go black for a moment (but we still got to see it anyway). The crowd popped when they realized they got to Charlotte. That also led to a “we want Becky” chant.
There seemed to be dueling chants for each woman but that also bled into another “we want Becky” chant. The crowd got into it after Ripley hit a Northern Lights suplex. She also hit a hard German suplex. Charlotte blocked a missile dropkick and applied a Boston crab. A series of counters led to a big boot by Charlotte for two.
Another series of counters led to Ripley impressively powering Charlotte into a vertical suplex, which got a nice reaction from the crowd. Charlotte booted Ripley from the ring before hitting a moonsault off the top to the outside. Ripley blocked a Natural Selection and applied a standing cloverleaf but Charlotte countered into a rollup for two.
Charlotte countered a Riptide and spiked Ripley with a DDT for a nearfall. They traded strikes until Charlotte hit a back elbow. She tried doing a cover with her feet on the ropes but the referee caught her. Ripley kicked Charlotte in the head but Charlotte shoved her off the top and hit a Natural Selection from the top rope for a very close nearfall. “This is awesome” chant.
Charlotte went for a Figure Eight but Ripley chucked her from the ring. Charlotte slammed Ripley into the post, trapped Ripley’s leg between the post and the steel steps, then kicked the steps repeatedly. Charlotte put Ripley in the Figure Eight and Ripley had no choice but to tap out. Charlotte is the new champion.
The crowd really got into this as it went and they popped for the finish. Very good match.
Riddle approached Shinsuke Nakamura and Rick Boogs in Gorilla position. Riddle was a fan of theirs and Boogs was a fan of his. They wished each other luck. Riddle said Randy Orton was a big fan of theirs too. Boogs was excited but Riddle admitted that Orton never actually told him that, he just assumed as much. Riddle asked Boogs to play Orton’s theme and Boogs obliged. They sang Orton’s theme together. Nakamura initially seemed annoyed but he got into it and did Orton’s pose. Kevin Owens was nearby and appeared nonplussed. The crowd enjoyed this.
(Apparently, a bunch of people lost their feed on Peacock. I’m watching on the WWE Network in Canada and it’s working fine.)
Men’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match: Big E defeated Kevin Owens, Riddle, Shinsuke Nakamura, Seth Rollins, Ricochet, John Morrison and Drew McIntyre (18:05)
Rollins and Morrison argued over who was the drip-iest until Riddle kicked Rollins in the face. Ricochet then wiped out Morrison with a crazy flip dive. Big E and McIntyre had a big staredown. McIntyre gave him an overhead suplex but Big E wiped him out with a spear to the outside. Nakamura gave Owens a reverse exploder onto a ladder.
Morrison (who is actually a big crowd favourite) gave Nakamura a corkscrew dive off a ladder. Namakura put Morrison in an armbar on top of the ladder but Rollins knocked down Nakamura with a flying knee. Morrison and Rollins decided to work together and they knocked down a few people with ladders.
Morrison gave Riddle a Samoan drop on a ladder before he and Rollins gave Ricochet a back body drop on a ladder. Owens went after Rollins but Morrison saved him. They set up a ladder bridge but Owens fought them off for a moment. Morrison and Rollins held up a ladder but Owens used a Lionsault to take them down.
It didn’t matter though because Rollins (with Morrison’s help) gave Owens a falcon arrow onto the edge of a ladder (like the Sami Zayn Michinoku Driver on Owens a few years ago). McIntyre went after Rollins and Morrison but they fought him off and Morrison hit a spinning elbow drop off the top (which probably missed). Rollins then hit Morrison with a ladder.
A bunch of babyfaces finally came back in and Riddle took out Rollins with an RKO. Riddle and Nakamura traded strikes until McIntyre took them down with a double Claymore. He also gave Big E a Future Shock DDT and gave Ricochet a reverse Alabama Slam on a ladder. McIntyre then wiped out a bunch of bodies with a flip dive.
McIntyre did a big 3-2-1 countdown before hitting Rollins with a Claymore. Veer and Shanky ran down to prevent McIntyre from climbing the ladder. Jinder Mahal ran down and attacked McIntyre with a chair. They dragged McIntyre away.
Riddle began climbing the ladder but Ricochet leaped onto the ladder to stop him. Riddle pushed the ladder over but Ricochet used the opportunity to wipe out a crowd with a crazy dive.
Riddle and Ricochet battled atop a ladder and Big E stopped Rollins from getting involved. Riddle yanked Big E and Ricochet from the ladder and gave them both RKOs. Nakamura fought off Riddle but Morrison sprayed him with a drip stick. Owens gave out stunners to Morrison and Nakamura. Ricochet blocked a stunner but Owens gave him a pop-up powerbomb instead.
Owens began climbing but Rollins powerbombed him to the outside through a ladder bridge. “Holy shit” and “this is awesome” chants. Rollins took too long to climb the ladder which allowed Big E to catch him with a Big Ending off a ladder.
Big E climbed the ladder and grabbed the briefcase. Big E is Mr. Money in the Bank. Crowd was very happy. Big E celebrated and the crowd remained on their feet. This was terrific.
The announcers plugged SummerSlam in Las Vegas.
Patrick interviewed Seth Rollins who could barely breathe. Rollins was pissed that he lost. Rollins thought he should have been in the Universal title match instead of the ladder match and he blamed Edge. He wasn’t waiting around. He said he was next in line for the winner of Edge vs. Reigns.
Roman Reigns (w/Paul Heyman) defeated Edge to retain the Universal Championship (33:05)
The crowd cheered Edge. The crowd booed Roman Reigns. They’re pumped for the match.
Edge used a waist lock takedown before smacking Reigns in the head to mock him. Reigns knocked Edge out of the ring with a shoulder block and mocked him. Once they got going, it seemed like Reigns would take control, but Edge targeted his arm/shoulder until Reigns bailed from the ring. Reigns came back with right hands but Edge knocked him from the ring again.
Edge went after him but Reigns gave him a Samoan drop on the outside. It seemed like Edge might get counted out (not really) but he got back in. Reigns toyed with Edge and attacked him around ringside for a bit. (Edge sold like he’s been beaten up for a while, but not that much has happened really.) The crowd chanted “Roman sucks” as he slowly sauntered around Edge.
Reigns held Edge for a long time in a rest hold. It’s somehow already been 14-minutes. Edge fought out but ate a right hand. Reigns followed with a drive-by dropkick for two.
Edge countered a superman punch into a backslide for two, then they knocked each other down with big boots. They traded strikes until Edge hit an Edge-O-Matic for two.
(This match is now as long as the men’s ladder match.)
Edge hit a flapjack and impaler DDT for two. With Reigns sitting on the top rope, Edge slammed his head into the top of the ring post before booting him in the corner. Edge applied a crossface but Reigns just barely got a rope break.
Edge went for a spear but Reigns caught him in a guillotine. Edge responded by driving himself and Reigns out of the ring. Reigns went for a spear on the outside but Edge moved and Reigns crashed through the barricade.
Edge then ran outside and speared Reigns through a different part of the barricade. Edge hoisted Reigns on his shoulders into the ring and applied a cover but Reigns kicked out. The crowd chanted for Edge. Edge tried another DDT but Reigns blocked and hit a superman punch. Edge fell into referee Charles Robinson, who died on the spot.
Reigns broke a piece off a steel chair and tried using it to put Edge in a crossface. (Officials and medical staff ran down to check on Robinson, but nobody thought to send a new referee into the ring). Edge fought out and put Reigns into a crossface using the metal piece of the chair.
The Usos made their way down the ramp but were taken out by Dominik and Rey Mysterio.
Edge still had the hold on but Seth Rollins slipped in and kicked Edge in the head. Reigns got up and set up for a spear. Edge speared Reigns anyway, which was cool, and a new referee ran out but Reigns just barely kicked out.
Rollins ran back down and leaped on the apron. Edge chased him away but Reigns speared Edge for the win. Reigns retains.
(I didn’t like this but the crowd was into it all the way through. So take that for what it’s worth. I don’t blame Edge or Reigns, it was just the match layout.)
Rollins attacked Edge after the match. Rollins and Reigns had a brief staredown before Edge attacked Rollins. Edge attacked him through the crowd and as soon as they disappeared from the frame, Reigns’ music played.
Heyman handed Reigns a mic. Reigns said the whole world can acknowledge him.
John Cena’s music hit and the place erupted.
Cena entered. He posed and played to the crowd as Reigns looked annoyed and the show came to an end.
A title match is set for Sunday’s Money in the Bank pre-show.
WWE announced today that Rey & Dominik Mysterio will defend their SmackDown Tag Team titles against The Usos on the Money in the Bank pre-show this Sunday. The pre-show will begin at 7 p.m. Eastern time, with the main card then starting at 8 p.m. Eastern.
Despite his DUI arrest from earlier this month, Jimmy Uso has remained on WWE TV. The Usos will team with Roman Reigns in a six-man tag match against Rey Mysterio, Dominik Mysterio & Edge on SmackDown’s go-home show for Money in the Bank tonight.
Money in the Bank is being held at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas. Here’s the updated card for the show:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Edge
WWE Champion Bobby Lashley defends against Kofi Kingston
Raw Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley defends against Charlotte Flair
Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Zelina Vega, Liv Morgan, Natalya, and Tamina)
Men’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Drew McIntyre, Big E, Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, and Shinsuke Nakamura)
Raw Tag Team Champions AJ Styles & Omos defend against The Viking Raiders
SmackDown Tag Team Champions Rey & Dominik Mysterio defend against The Usos (pre-show)
The final participant for this year’s women’s Money in the Bank ladder match has now been revealed.
WWE announced this afternoon that Tamina will be taking part in Sunday’s women’s Money in the Bank ladder match. She joins Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Zelina Vega, Liv Morgan, and Natalya in the match.
Tamina & Natalya are the current WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. They lost a non-title match to the debuting Shotzi Blackheart & Tegan Nox on SmackDown last Friday.
Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas is hosting Money in the Bank on Sunday. Here’s the updated card for the pay-per-view:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Edge
WWE Champion Bobby Lashley defends against Kofi Kingston
Raw Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley defends against Charlotte Flair
Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Zelina Vega, Liv Morgan, Natalya, and Tamina)
Men’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Drew McIntyre, Big E, Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, and Shinsuke Nakamura)
Raw Tag Team Champions AJ Styles & Omos defend against The Viking Raiders
A title match that was originally announced for next week’s Raw has instead been moved to Money in the Bank.
WWE has announced that AJ Styles & Omos will defend their Raw Tag Team titles against The Viking Raiders (Ivar & Erik) at Money in the Bank. The pay-per-view is taking place at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas this Sunday (July 18).
The Raw Tag Team title match being moved to Money in the Bank comes after the PPV lost one of its other championship matches. Bianca Belair was set to defend her SmackDown Women’s Championship against Bayley in an I Quit match at Money in the Bank, but that won’t be happening due to Bayley’s knee injury. Belair defending her title against Carmella is set for this Friday’s SmackDown, which will mark the start of WWE’s return to touring.
The Viking Raiders became the number one contenders to Styles & Omos’ titles by winning a battle royal on Raw last month.
Ivar defeated Styles in a singles match on tonight’s Raw, while Omos defeated Erik. This was Omos’ first televised singles match in WWE.
Styles & Omos won the Raw Tag Team titles by defeating The New Day’s Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods at WrestleMania 37 this April.
Here’s the updated card for Money in the Bank:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Edge
WWE Champion Bobby Lashley defends against Kofi Kingston
Raw Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley defends against Charlotte Flair
Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Zelina Vega, Liv Morgan, Natalya, and one more wrestler to be announced)
Men’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Drew McIntyre, Big E, Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, and Shinsuke Nakamura)
Raw Tag Team Champions AJ Styles & Omos defend against The Viking Raiders
One of the last spots in this year’s women’s Money in the Bank ladder match has now been filled.
WWE announced on Monday that Natalya will be taking part in the women’s Money in the Bank ladder match. The announcement was made via a tweet from WWE authority figure Sonya Deville.
Deville wrote: “With all the changes and challengers for #MITB and #Smackdown, I will be the one to establish some consistency for this Sunday and there is NO ONE more consistent than 1/2 of our @WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions…@natbynature. Nattie, welcome to the MITB Ladder Match!”
Natalya joins Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Zelina Vega, and Liv Morgan in the women’s Money in the Bank ladder match. There’s still one more wrestler left to be announced for the match.
Carmella had originally been announced as one of the women’s Money in the Bank participants. But with Bayley injured and out of her scheduled match against SmackDown Women’s Champion Bianca Belair at Money in the Bank, it was announced that Belair will instead be defending her title against Carmella on this Friday’s SmackDown. Morgan was then announced as Carmella’s replacement for the women’s Money in the Bank ladder match.
Natalya & Tamina are the current WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. They lost a non-title match to the debuting Shotzi Blackheart & Tegan Nox on SmackDown this past Friday.
Money in the Bank is taking place at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas this Sunday (July 18). Here’s the updated card for the pay-per-view:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Edge
WWE Champion Bobby Lashley defends against Kofi Kingston
Raw Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley defends against Charlotte Flair
Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Zelina Vega, Liv Morgan, Natalya, and one more wrestler to be determined)
Men’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Drew McIntyre, Big E, Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, and Shinsuke Nakamura)
Three new participants have been confirmed for this year’s Money in the Bank ladder matches.
With Seth Rollins and Shinsuke Nakamura winning qualifying matches on SmackDown tonight, the field for this year’s men’s Money in the Bank ladder match is now fully set. Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Drew McIntyre, Big E, Kevin Owens, Rollins, and Nakamura will be taking part in the match.
Rollins qualified for Money in the Bank by defeating Cesaro tonight. Nakamura qualified by defeating Baron Corbin.
It was also announced on SmackDown tonight that Liv Morgan is taking Carmella’s spot in this year’s women’s Money in the Bank ladder match. Carmella is out of the match because she’s instead challenging for Bianca Belair’s SmackDown Women’s Championship on next Friday’s episode of SmackDown.
Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Zelina Vega, and Morgan are set for the women’s Money in the Bank ladder match thus far. There are still two more spots left to be filled.
Money in the Bank is taking place at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas on Sunday, July 18. Here’s the updated card for the PPV:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Edge
WWE Champion Bobby Lashley defends against Kofi Kingston
Raw Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley defends against Charlotte Flair
Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Zelina Vega, Liv Morgan, and two more wrestlers to be determined)
Men’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Drew McIntyre, Big E, Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, and Shinsuke Nakamura)
Owens defeated Sami Zayn in a Last Man Standing match on SmackDown tonight to qualifying for this year’s men’s Money in the Bank ladder match. Owens hit a pop-up powerbomb, a stunner, powerbombed Zayn through two tables, and then powerbombed Zayn on the apron during the closing stretch of the match.
Zayn had sent Owens off the top turnbuckle and through two tables that were stacked up outside of the ring during tonight’s match, but Owens got up before the 10 count. Zayn also gave Owens three Helluva Kicks in a row at one point, but Owens rolled out of the ring to his feet before the referee could count to 10.
Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Drew McIntyre, Big E, and Owens are the first six wrestlers to qualify for the men’s Money in the Bank ladder match. The final two spots will be determined by qualifying matches on next Friday’s SmackDown. The qualifying matches are Seth Rollins vs. Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Baron Corbin.
Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Carmella, and the returning Zelina Vega have been announced for the women’s Money in the Bank ladder match thus far.
Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas is hosting Money in the Bank on Sunday, July 18.
Bianca Belair will attempt to settle her feud with Bayley at Money in the Bank.
WWE has announced that Belair will defend her SmackDown Women’s Championship against Bayley in an I Quit match at Money in the Bank. This will be the third title shot that Bayley has gotten against Belair.
Belair retained her SmackDown Women’s Championship by defeating Bayley at both WrestleMania Backlash and Hell in a Cell. The latter title defense was a Hell in a Cell match.
On last week’s SmackDown, Bayley & Seth Rollins defeated Belair & Cesaro in a mixed tag team match. Bayley pinned Belair to get the win.
There was a face-to-face segment with Belair and Bayley on tonight’s SmackDown. Belair admitted that Bayley is in her head and proposed the I Quit match as a way to put an end to that. Bayley accepted the challenge and vowed that she’ll never quit.
Money in the Bank is taking place at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas on Sunday, July 18. Here’s the updated card for the pay-per-view:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Edge
WWE Champion Bobby Lashley defends against Kofi Kingston
I Quit match: SmackDown Women’s Champion Bianca Belair defends against Bayley
Raw Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley defends against Charlotte Flair
Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Carmella, Zelina Vega, and two more wrestlers to be determined)
Men’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Drew McIntyre, Big E, Kevin Owens, and two more wrestlers to be determined)
Drew McIntyre is the final Raw wrestler to qualify for Money in the Bank.
In the main event of tonight’s Raw, McIntyre defeated Riddle and AJ Styles in a triple threat last chance Money in the Bank qualifying match. The match was originally supposed to feature McIntyre, Styles, and Randy Orton, but there was an angle where Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville said at the start of the show that Orton couldn’t compete tonight due to circumstances out of their control.
Riddle, who has already qualified for Money in the Bank on his own, was wrestling on behalf of his RK-Bro partner Orton tonight. Riddle won a battle royal earlier in the night to advance to the qualifying match.
Raw’s Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, and McIntyre and SmackDown’s Big E are the first five wrestlers to qualify for this year’s men’s Money in the Bank ladder match. The remaining three spots in the match will go to wrestlers from SmackDown. A Last Man Standing match between Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn on this Friday’s SmackDown will determine who gets one of those spots.
McIntyre, Styles, and Orton had all lost their initial Money in the Bank qualifying matches. Riddle defeated McIntyre last week, Ricochet defeated Styles, and Morrison defeated Orton.
As a stipulation of losing his Hell in a Cell match against Bobby Lashley earlier this month, McIntyre can’t challenge for the WWE Championship again while Lashley is still champion. WWE has said that, if McIntyre wins Money in the Bank, he would have to wait until Lashley loses the title if he wants to cash in on the WWE Champion.
Money in the Bank is taking place at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas on Sunday, July 18. It will be the first PPV in WWE’s return to touring. Here’s what’s been announced for the PPV thus far:
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Edge
WWE Champion Bobby Lashley defends against Kofi Kingston
Raw Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley defends against Charlotte Flair
Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Carmella, and three more wrestlers to be determined)
Men’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Drew McIntyre, Big E, and three more wrestlers to be determined)
Edge is getting his one-on-one title shot against Universal Champion Roman Reigns.
On this week’s Talking Smack, it was announced that Reigns will defend his Universal Championship against Edge at Money in the Bank. The pay-per-view is taking place at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas on Sunday, July 18. It will be the first PPV in WWE’s return to touring.
Video aired on Talking Smack of Edge approaching WWE authority figures Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville after last night’s SmackDown. Edge said he wanted the match that should have happened at WrestleMania 37: Roman Reigns vs. Edge for the Universal Championship. Edge demanded that the match be made for Money in the Bank. Pearce agreed to give Edge the match.
Seth Rollins was a guest on Talking Smack when the announcement was made. Rollins was upset about Reigns vs. Edge being announced. Rollins said he’s been around every day unlike Edge and deserves the match instead. Rollins stormed off Talking Smack looking to talk to somebody about the situation.
Rollins had told Pearce and Deville on SmackDown last night that he wanted the next shot at Reigns’ Universal title. Pearce responded by saying that they would take it under advisement.
Edge returned to SmackDown last night and brawled with Reigns. It was Edge’s first appearance on WWE television since WrestleMania 37 this April.
Reigns retained the Universal Championship by defeating Edge and Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 37. Edge won this year’s men’s Royal Rumble match to get the WrestleMania title shot, but Bryan was added to make it a triple threat match. The finish of the match was Reigns stacking Edge and Bryan on top of each other and pinning them.
Here’s the updated card for Money in the Bank.
Universal Champion Roman Reigns defends against Edge
WWE Champion Bobby Lashley defends against Kofi Kingston
Raw Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley defends against Charlotte Flair
Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Asuka, Naomi, Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, Carmella, and three more wrestlers to be determined)
Men’s Money in the Bank ladder match (Ricochet, John Morrison, Riddle, Big E, and four more wrestlers to be determined)
A last chance qualifying match between AJ Styles, Randy Orton, and Drew McIntyre on Monday’s Raw will determine Raw’s final participant for the men’s Money in the Bank ladder match. A Last Man Standing Money in the Bank qualifying match between Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn has also been announced for next week’s SmackDown.
