Stars of the Night: Money in the Bank 2014
Two nights ago, we had the Money in the Bank pay-per-view. It received mixed reviews, with most of the negative reviews attacking the booking decisions. But we're not here to look at that, we're here to recognize the top performances from last night. I know I had seven entries last time, but I'm increasing that to ten. This was tough, because there were some excellent performers. The criteria for grading includes in-ring performance, crowd reaction, impact on the show, and match results.
But before I get to the stars, I would like to point out some of the negatives. Let's start with Cesaro and Bray Wyatt. These are two of the hottest performers in the WWE, but they were mostly invisible during the title match. Cesaro did a great job with the ladder balancing spot, but Wyatt really didn't stand out at all. Next, the managers. Both Paul Heyman and Zeb Colter were total non-factors. Also, we saw a ref move Colter out of the way just before Kane's pyro exploded. That was dumb. Another negative: Summer Rae. She's supposed to be a face now, but isn't really received well by the crowd. Her match with Layla was totally forgettable, but Layla was better in the ring out of the two. Last but not least, Bo Dallas. Instead of getting a match, he got mocked by Daniel Bryan. When he first came out, it seemed like this would be a big moment for him. That didn't happen at all. Was there really nothing better he could have done? Hell, it may have been better if he hadn't come out at all.
10. Rusev- For the first time ever, we saw Rusev in a competitive WWE match. It was a solid match and Big E looked pretty good. However, I have to give the nod to Rusev because he was the one who picked up the win in the end. The former Intercontinental Champion was more impressive in the ring, but the whole patriotic gimmick isn't working out very well. I was thinking about adding Damien Sandow here by virtue of making the Paul Revere gimmick work, putting on a surprisingly good match, and for doing a moonsault. However, the fact that he really had no chance of winning drops him off.
9. Adam Rose- Speaking of Damien Sandow, how about Adam Rose? Out of the three newest WWE superstars (Rose, Dallas, and Rusev), Rose got the biggest pop last night. He also had one of the best matches of his career (along with his match with Camacho at Takeover).
8. John Cena- How is that the guy who won his fifteenth world title and the main event get ranked eighth? Well, for starters, it was quite predictable. The WWE kept pushing Roman Reigns as the favorite, but everyone knew Cena would win. Also, Cena wasn't very impressive in the match. Sure, he took out Kane and Randy Orton towards the end, but that was just about it. I'm sure the WWE would have liked a bigger pop than the one Cena got, but what were they expecting? Also, it seems that Cena's main job as champ is to lose to Brock Lesnar in August.
7. Naomi- Yes, a diva who lost beats out the guy who was named the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion. How? By being very impressive in her match against Paige, who doesn't even make the list (she put on a good performance, but her reign is growing stale). Naomi on the other hand, gave the best performance of her career. The only negative of this match: the attention being paid to Cameron. The WWE needs to split this group up immediately.
6. Randy Orton- Yes, Blandy Boreton makes the list ahead of Rusev and Cena. First, he gave a decent interview with Byron Saxton that pretty much served to put over Reigns. But what gets him on this list was his performance in the main event. Early on, his head got busted open. It was clear that he was bleeding badly. Nonetheless, Orton continued to fight and put on a great performance. He can even be considered the runner-up of this match.
5. Luke Harper and Erick Rowan- Even though they lost the match for the WWE tag team titles, they put on a superb performance. First, they gave a little promo, which shows that they are stepping out from under the shadow of Bray Wyatt, who wasn't even close to making this list. As for the match itself, these two were great. Harper was simply fantastic while Rowan gave the best performance of his career. These two will almost certainly be tag champs this year.
4. The Usos- Now let's look at the guys who actually won the tag title match. They put on a great performance as well. The main reason they're over Harper and Rowan is because they won. Some people think they should have lost, but I believe having them retain was the right choice. They deserve a lengthy reign.
3. Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston, Rob Van Dam- Without a doubt, the Money in the Bank Contract Ladder Match was the best of the night. It was simply excellent. All six superstars gave their all and delivered. Therefore, all six of these guys make it into the top three spots of this list. Ziggler, Swagger, Kingston, and Van Dam all were fantastic and provided some great spots. Kudos to all of them.
2. Dean Ambrose- The Lunatic Fringe was the runner-up of the Contract Ladder Match and received some of the biggest pops of the night. He also superplexed Seth Rollins off of a ladder, which was a great spot. It's clear that the WWE Universe consider him one of the top faces in the company.
1. Seth Rollins- The former tag team champion and new Mr. Money in the Bank earns The Wrestling Examiner's top seal of approval for his work on Sunday. His performance was truly excellent in the Contract Ladder Match, especially his bumps. Granted, he needed the help of Kane to win, but a win is a win. Looks like The Architect will become WWE World Heavyweight Champion. On a personal note, I'm a huge fan of all the former Hounds of Justice, so seeing Rollins win was awesome.
All in all, I thought Money in the Bank was a good show. We can only pray that WWE Battleground will be this good.
But before I get to the stars, I would like to point out some of the negatives. Let's start with Cesaro and Bray Wyatt. These are two of the hottest performers in the WWE, but they were mostly invisible during the title match. Cesaro did a great job with the ladder balancing spot, but Wyatt really didn't stand out at all. Next, the managers. Both Paul Heyman and Zeb Colter were total non-factors. Also, we saw a ref move Colter out of the way just before Kane's pyro exploded. That was dumb. Another negative: Summer Rae. She's supposed to be a face now, but isn't really received well by the crowd. Her match with Layla was totally forgettable, but Layla was better in the ring out of the two. Last but not least, Bo Dallas. Instead of getting a match, he got mocked by Daniel Bryan. When he first came out, it seemed like this would be a big moment for him. That didn't happen at all. Was there really nothing better he could have done? Hell, it may have been better if he hadn't come out at all.
10. Rusev- For the first time ever, we saw Rusev in a competitive WWE match. It was a solid match and Big E looked pretty good. However, I have to give the nod to Rusev because he was the one who picked up the win in the end. The former Intercontinental Champion was more impressive in the ring, but the whole patriotic gimmick isn't working out very well. I was thinking about adding Damien Sandow here by virtue of making the Paul Revere gimmick work, putting on a surprisingly good match, and for doing a moonsault. However, the fact that he really had no chance of winning drops him off.
9. Adam Rose- Speaking of Damien Sandow, how about Adam Rose? Out of the three newest WWE superstars (Rose, Dallas, and Rusev), Rose got the biggest pop last night. He also had one of the best matches of his career (along with his match with Camacho at Takeover).
8. John Cena- How is that the guy who won his fifteenth world title and the main event get ranked eighth? Well, for starters, it was quite predictable. The WWE kept pushing Roman Reigns as the favorite, but everyone knew Cena would win. Also, Cena wasn't very impressive in the match. Sure, he took out Kane and Randy Orton towards the end, but that was just about it. I'm sure the WWE would have liked a bigger pop than the one Cena got, but what were they expecting? Also, it seems that Cena's main job as champ is to lose to Brock Lesnar in August.
7. Naomi- Yes, a diva who lost beats out the guy who was named the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion. How? By being very impressive in her match against Paige, who doesn't even make the list (she put on a good performance, but her reign is growing stale). Naomi on the other hand, gave the best performance of her career. The only negative of this match: the attention being paid to Cameron. The WWE needs to split this group up immediately.
6. Randy Orton- Yes, Blandy Boreton makes the list ahead of Rusev and Cena. First, he gave a decent interview with Byron Saxton that pretty much served to put over Reigns. But what gets him on this list was his performance in the main event. Early on, his head got busted open. It was clear that he was bleeding badly. Nonetheless, Orton continued to fight and put on a great performance. He can even be considered the runner-up of this match.
5. Luke Harper and Erick Rowan- Even though they lost the match for the WWE tag team titles, they put on a superb performance. First, they gave a little promo, which shows that they are stepping out from under the shadow of Bray Wyatt, who wasn't even close to making this list. As for the match itself, these two were great. Harper was simply fantastic while Rowan gave the best performance of his career. These two will almost certainly be tag champs this year.
4. The Usos- Now let's look at the guys who actually won the tag title match. They put on a great performance as well. The main reason they're over Harper and Rowan is because they won. Some people think they should have lost, but I believe having them retain was the right choice. They deserve a lengthy reign.
3. Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston, Rob Van Dam- Without a doubt, the Money in the Bank Contract Ladder Match was the best of the night. It was simply excellent. All six superstars gave their all and delivered. Therefore, all six of these guys make it into the top three spots of this list. Ziggler, Swagger, Kingston, and Van Dam all were fantastic and provided some great spots. Kudos to all of them.
2. Dean Ambrose- The Lunatic Fringe was the runner-up of the Contract Ladder Match and received some of the biggest pops of the night. He also superplexed Seth Rollins off of a ladder, which was a great spot. It's clear that the WWE Universe consider him one of the top faces in the company.
1. Seth Rollins- The former tag team champion and new Mr. Money in the Bank earns The Wrestling Examiner's top seal of approval for his work on Sunday. His performance was truly excellent in the Contract Ladder Match, especially his bumps. Granted, he needed the help of Kane to win, but a win is a win. Looks like The Architect will become WWE World Heavyweight Champion. On a personal note, I'm a huge fan of all the former Hounds of Justice, so seeing Rollins win was awesome.
All in all, I thought Money in the Bank was a good show. We can only pray that WWE Battleground will be this good.
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