.WWE Money in the Bank: The winners from the last 5 years -Where are they now? Some have seen their careers take off while some have fallen off the totem pole.
Here are the winners of the Money in the bank ladder matches and what has become of them since.
2018
Braun Strowman
Then– The Monster among men was the winner of the Men’s Ladder match. He then successfully defended his contract against Kevin Owens at SummerSlam. Braun Strowman was in the middle of a heavy push at the time. He won the Greatest Royal Rumble earlier that year and it looked like it was only a matter of time before he would wear the big red belt. Strowman announced that he would cash his briefcase at Hell in a cell Pay per View. That made him only the 3rd person after Rob Van Dam and John Cena to announce the Cash-in beforehand. The match ended in a no contest however as Brock Lesnar returned to lay waste to both Strowman and the then Universal Champion, Roman Reigns.
Now– After his failed attempt at cashing in, Strowman was inserted into a triple-threat match against Reigns and Lesnar. The bout soon became a singles match as Roman relinquished his title following his leukaemia relapse. Strowman lost the match in a matter of minutes following a Baron Corbin interference.
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He went on to have a meaningless feud with Corbin and has not been in the title picture ever since. He was replaced by Finn Balor at Royal Rumble for the title match and featured in the Pre-Show at Mania in the Battle Royale. Strowman reportedly has heat from management for forgetting his spots in the match. He was announced to take part in this years Money in the Bank ladder match but lost his spot to Sami Zayn. Meltzer reported that this was part of a larger storyline. Hopefully this storyline leads to his resurgence because the big man has colosally fallen by the wayside.
Alexa Bliss
Then– Alexa Bliss won the contract and then interfered in the Raw Women’s Championship Match between Nia Jax and Ronda Rousey. She cashed in her contract on Nia Jax and defeated her, becoming the first woman, and third wrestler overall (Kane and Dean Ambrose being the other 2), to cash–in the Money in the Bank contract the same night after winning it.
Now– Bliss eventually lost the title to Ronda Rousey at SummerSlam. After a failed attempt at recapturing the title from Ronda, she started feuding with Trish Stratus and Lita. Bliss was announced to participate in a tag team match at Evolution but was pulled out due to a concussion. She returned to participate at the Royal Rumble but very sparingly wrestled after that. Bliss was announced as a participant for this years Money in the bank but was pulled out. A medical update was released on the WWE website. It stated that the 5-time women’s champion was not medically unfit. She has been replaced by Nikki Cross.
2017
Baron Corbin
Then– The Lone Wolf won the SmackDown exclusive Money in the Bank Ladder match in 2017. He attempted to cash-in on Jinder Mahal who was the WWE Champion then after interfering in his match against John Cena. However, Corbin lost to Jinder after a Cena distraction making him the 3rd person then, to fail to cash in.
Now– Following the failed cash-in, Corbin’s appearances became infrequent at SmackDown. However, following a brand and image change, his career has flourished. Corbin was moved to Raw in the Superstar Shakeup and was made the constable of Raw. He may be firmly placed in the Mid-Card now but he has become one of the most despicable heels in the roster and is featured regularly in major storylines. He is one of the participants of this years Money in the Bank Ladder match and if rumors are to believed, he is set to be next in line for a shot at the Universal title.
Carmella
Then– Carmella won the first ever Women’s Money in the Bank match in controversial fashion. James Ellsworth unclipped the briefcase and dropped it to her. However, the result was overturned and another Money in the Bank match was announced on SmackDown. This time, the princess of Staten Island won the case by unclipping it herself. After months of trying and failing for one reason after the other, Carmella finally cashed in her Briefcase on Charlotte. The Queen had been laid out by the IIconics and Carmella took the opportunity to crown herself the new SmackDown Women’s Champion. She held on to the contract for 287 days, making it the longest time any wrestler has held on to a Money in the Bank briefcase.
Now– Carmella had a decent reign with the title. However, she dropped it back to Charlotte at SummerSlam in a triple-threat match that saw Becky turn on Charlotte and give the new champion a post-match beatdown. Carmella hasn’t really done much after that. She won the mixed match challenge and earned the no.30 spot at the Royal Rumble but only lasted 7 minutes. She participated in the Pre-Show Battle Royal and won but that hasn’t led to anything as well. Carmella will participate in the upcoming Money in the Bank Ladder Match.
2016
Dean Ambrose
Then– Dean Ambrose won the 2016 Money in the Bank Ladder Match. The Lunatic Fringe Cashed in his Contract for the WWE World heavyweight match immediately after his Shield brethren, Seth and Roman, were done clashing for it. Seth had priced the belt from Roman only to lose it to Ambrose on the same night. Dean became only the second wrestler to cash in the contract on the same night as winning it.
Now– Dean Ambrose took the title with him to SmackDown following the brand split. He would go on to successfully defended it against Roman and Seth at Battleground. He would eventually lose the title to AJ Styles at Backlash. Dean did fairly well after that, winning the Intercontinental championship and Tag-team championships. He reformed the Shield with Roman and Seth and was very popular among the fans. However, he was never in the world title picture again. After a failed heel turn and eventual disappointment with the way his character was handled, Ambrose refused to re-sign with the company. The company gave Ambrose a rousing farewell. It is still currently unknown where the former WWE Champion’s future lies but one can say with enough authority that it surely isn’t with the WWE.
2015
Sheamus
Then– Sheamus was the winner of the 2015 Money in the Bank making him only the second wrestler (after Edge) to win the Money in the Bank, Royal Rumble and King of the Ring. He cashed in his contract on Roman Reigns who had just won the vacant championship following a tournament that culminated at Survivor Series. With that victory he became a 4-time world champion in the WWE.
Now– He dropped the belt back to Roman after 22 days. He has since morphed himself into a tag team wrestler. He and Cesaro formed one of the greatest tag teams in the WWE. The duo won the Raw and SmackDown Tag team titles multiple times. Sheamus suffered a concussion at Wrestlemania this year and barring an appearance on SmackDown after mania, he is yet to return to wrestling. There are rumors and speculations that the Irish star will be forced to retire. However, Cesaro says he believes that Sheamus isn’t done yet. He also informed the fans that the two were split up and are no longer a team.
2014
Seth Rollins
Then– Seth Rollins took home the 2014 Money in the Bank briefcase following a Kane interference. Rollins tried a number of times to cash in but would get interrupted by others. He finally cashed-in his contract and he did so in the Main-Event of Wrestlemania 31 (Becoming the first person to cash in at mania). He pinned Roman Reigns to win the title from Brock Lesnar under Triple-threat rules. The new champion hoisted the belt over his head to a cheering crowd that had just witnessed what was possibly the greatest cash-in of all time!
Now– Rollins tore the ACL, MCL and medial meniscus in his knee while attempting to execute a sunset flip powerbomb during a match against Kane at a WWE live event. The injury forced him to vacate the championship after a 220-day reign. He was inserted into a world championship match against Roman Reign pretty soon into his return.
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The Architect won the title off of Roman at Money in the Bank. With that he handed the Big Dog his first clean loss on the main roster. He would however immediately lose the title to Ambrose who cashed his contract on the same night that he won. Rollins has since become a grand slam champion in the promotion, won the Royal Rumble, has a 3-0 Wrestlemania streak since his return and is currently the Universal Champion. He is probably the wrestler with the most success among the money in the bank winners in the last five years.
Money in the Bank will take place at take place on May 19, 2019, at the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut.
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