WWE Money in the Bank 2020 Review

It was the most unique WWE Money in the Bank pay-per-view ever in 2020 with both MITB matches happening at the same time, plus more unique matches.

Welcome to the WWE Money in the Bank 2020 review on TJRWrestling. Happy Mother’s Day to all the wonderful mothers out there. This is usually one of my favorite WWE PPVs over the year, but it’s going to be a lot different this year with no fans in attendance due to the ongoing health crisis.

In addition to that, the two Money in the Bank ladder matches are happening simultaneously at WWE Headquarters in Stamford, CT so that’s going to be unique to watch. Let’s get to it.

(This was written live in 2020 and remains unchanged. One thing I want to add is that I think WWE deserves a lot of credit for continuing to put on new shows during the COVID-19 pandemic. It wasn’t easy, but they worked hard to entertain us and I think as we look back on it two years later, they really deserve some praise for that.)

The Smackdown announce team of Michael Cole and Corey Graves called the Kickoff Show match.

Kickoff Show Match: Jeff Hardy vs. Cesaro

Cesaro with a shoulder tackle, then a headlock and Hardy hit a shoulder tackle followed by a hip toss. Hardy with an atomic drop, snap mare and a flipping neckbreaker. Hardy went for a running attack on the floor, but Cesaro caught him and slammed Jeff onto the barricade. Hardy got back in the ring before the ten count. Cesaro hit an elbow smash to the back of the neck followed by a chinlock. Hardy sent Cesaro into the turnbuckle, then a spin kick that sent Cesaro to the apron and Hardy hit a dropkick. While they were on the floor. Cesaro did a hard whip that sent Hardy into the side of the ring apron. Cesaro sent Hardy into the apron again where the LED boards were. Back in the ring, Cesaro jumped off the middle ropes with a leg drop. Cesaro worked over Jeff with multiple uppercuts. Cesaro slapped on an abdominal stretch submission hold with Hardy getting out of it with a hiptoss. Cesaro came back with a running forearm followed by punches to the head and Cesaro hit a suplex for two. Jeff fought out a chinlock with a jawbreaker to create some space. Hardy continued the comeback with a forearm, an atomic drop, double leg drop and basement dropkick for a two count. Cesaro countered a Twist of Fate attempt by shoving Jeff into the corner and Cesaro tripped up Jeff on the top turnbuckle. Cesaro went for a suplex off the top, Hardy countered with an elbow and Hardy hit a Whisper in the Wind twisting splash for a two count. Hardy hit a Twist of Fate for a two count. Hardy picked Cesaro up for a front slam as if he was Mark Henry. Hardy went up top, Cesaro with a gutwrench suplex off the top and that got a two count. Hardy with a back body drop, Cesaro off the ropes and Cesaro hit a running clothesline for two. They were on the floor, Cesaro with an uppercut and Jeff came back with a whip into the steps. Hardy with a clothesline off the barricade. Hardy went up top and hit a Swanton Bomb onto Cesaro for the pinfall win at 13:30.

Winner by pinfall: Jeff Hardy

Analysis: ***1/4 This was a pretty good match full of action with both guys getting a lot of offense. Hardy took a beating for most of it, then he made the big comeback and found a way to get the decisive win. It would be awesome if Cesaro went on a winning streak that led to a push for him, but it doesn’t seem like that is going to happen any time soon. I like how Hardy didn’t get the win right after the Twist of Fate and instead he had to fight for it more. It made sense for Hardy to win here since he’s back in action and will likely be pushed to an upper midcard level for his feud with Sheamus. I have seen Jeff Hardy win matches with the Swanton Bomb for over 20 years now and it still looks like a cool finisher.

I watched this after the main show, so I have a question: Why not just show this during the main show since the main PPV went 2 hours and 25 minutes? They don’t have to show a match on the Kickoff Show in this empty arena era, but I guess WWE feels they should. They could have easily put this on the main card and put some lesser names on the Kickoff Show.

WWE Money in the Bank
From WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida (mostly) and WWE Headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut
Sunday, May 10, 2020

The opening video package focused on the two Money in the Bank ladder matches taking place at WWE Headquarters. It was creative and well done. Apparently the risk is worth the reward. Good thing they programmed all the superstars to repeat the phrase like robots too.

The show began at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando. The Smackdown Tag Team Title match is up first. The New Day’s Big E and Kofi Kingston entered as the champions. Lucha House Party was next. The announce team of Michael Cole and Corey Graves were at ringside to call the action. The Miz and John Morrison were up next and The Forgotten Sons were last. There were ladders all around the WWE PC even though the Ladder Matches are not taking place there.

Smackdown Tag Team Championships: The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Big E) vs. Lucha House Party (Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado) vs. The Miz and John Morrison vs. Forgotten Sons (Steve Cutler and Wesley Blake) w/Jackson Ryker

The first fall wins the match. There are no disqualifications or countouts in this match. Two wrestlers are the legal men while the other six are on the apron.

Kingston started with Metalik with Kofi using his speed early on to avoid an attack, but then Metalik got a headscissors. Metalik has a different kind of mask to free his hair. Blake tagged in to clean house a bit, then he tagged in Cutler and hit a double backbreaker. Metalik with a springboard back elbow on both Sons. Morrison tagged in with Metalik taking him down. Metalik kicked Miz off the apron, so Morrison met Metalik on the top and Morrison gave Metalik a Spanish Fly slam off the top onto about six guys on the floor. Nice spot with the wrestlers there to break the fall. Metalik slapped Cutler to the floor when Cutler was legal, but Morrison distracted the referee and Ryker tripped up Metalik leading to Cutler kicking and elbowing Metalik. Blake back in as Cutler gave his partner a hiptoss onto Metalik for a two count. Blake with a dropkick for a two count. Cutler tagged back in, Metalik with a headscissors on Blake and a Tornado DDT on Cutler. Dorado tagged in against Morrison with Dorado hitting a cross body block and a moonsault press onto Morrison. Dorado with a dropsault on Morrison for a two count. Dorado with a springboard hurricanrana into a pin for two as Blake broke up the pin. Kingston back in with a double axehandle on Blake, but Morrison hit a springboard kick on Kofi. Miz was back in going for a double team with Kofi managing to hit a double foot stomp to the chest for two. Kingston with a boom drop legdrop on Miz. Kofi went for Trouble in Paradise, Miz blocked and Kofi kicked Miz out of the ring as Cutler and Big E tagged in. Cutler worked over Big E with punches, Kingston tagged back in and Kingston hit a double foot stomp off the top as Big E held Cutler, which was good for a two count. Morrison knocked Kingston off the ropes while Blake tagged himself in. Blake and Cutler hit their double team foot stomp into a reverse DDT, then Miz hit a Skull Crushing Finale on Blake and Morrison hit a Starship Pain splash on Big E for two as Metalik broke up the pin. Dorado with a springboard Stunner on Morrison and Metalik with a hurricanrana off the top on Morrison. Dorado was legal now as he hit a double kick with Metalik on Big E. Dorado up top with a splash on Big E and Metalik walked the ropes leading to an elbow drop to the top on Big E for two. Cutler and Blake were in the ring, but Big E dumped both guys out. Kingston hit a dive on Blake and Cutler slammed Kofi into the ring post. Big E ran the ropes, Ryker pulled the ropes down and the referee ejected Ryker to the back. Cole wondered why that was since there are no disqualifications in the match. Dorado and Metalik hit dives onto four guys (Miz, Morrison, Cutler and Blake) on the floor. Big E was back up in the ring as Metalik hit a dive off the ropes, but Big E caught Metalik. Kingston hit the Trouble in Paradise on Dorado and Big E hit the Big Ending on Metalik for the pinfall win at 12:02.

Winners by pinfall: The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Big E)

Analysis: ***1/2 This was really well done because they wrestled at a very fast pace from the moment the bell rang and there were a few spots in the match where they had some believable nearfalls. The New Day really didn’t get a lot of offense the whole match, especially Big E, but there he was to get the win for his team in the end. Going into the match I picked New Day to win while also thinking that Lucha House Party was there to take the pin, so it was predictable in that sense. I still think it was a fun match to watch and also a smart choice for an opener since it was a fast-paced match full of action.

A commercial aired for The Undertaker’s “The Last Ride” documentary on WWE Network. I saw it and I really liked it. I’ll probably write more about it on TJRWrestling on Monday or mid-week.

They showed a Lacey Evans promo from earlier in the day talking about how she had a good plan to win the Money in the Bank ladder match because she memorized the layout of WWE Headquarters.

Drew McIntyre, the WWE Champion, was interviewed backstage by Charly Caruso and Drew wished all the mothers a Happy Mother’s Day. McIntyre said that Rollins is a great performer, but Drew has heart and desire while saying he’s worked too hard to get the WWE Title, so he’ll be damned if he loses it tonight. McIntyre said he’s going to close Seth’s mouth, welcome him to Claymore Country and break his jaw.

R-Truth made his entrance for a match doing his What’s Up song that sounds different without any fans there. At the end, Truth told the crowd to make some noise…and there was no crowd to make noise, so that was funny. A “What’s Up” by Truth ended it. Montel Vontavious Porter made his entrance as the opponent for this match that has no storyline. The Raw announce team of Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton and Samoa Joe were ringside to call the Raw action.

It was also announced that the next WWE pay-per-view is Backlash on June 14 on WWE Network. There was no Backlash event last year, but they did bring the PPV name back from 2016-2018. There were also Backlash events from 1999 to 2009 as well.

R-Truth tried to teach MVP about “Ballin’” which is MVP’s taunt and Truth was acting weird. MVP wanted Truth to get out of his face. It looked like the match would begin, but then Bobby Lashley showed up for the interruption with Lashley in his ring gear. Lashley told MVP he’s got this and told him to take the night off. MVP said that is what’s up. Truth tried to take the night off, but Lashley stopped him. Truth also accidentally slapped Lashley in the face, which was funny and also pissed off Lashley.

Bobby Lashley vs. R-Truth

Truth tried to avoid starting the match, but Lashley hit him with shoulder tackles and Lashley threw Truth across the ring. Lashley hit a spinebuster that looked impressive. Truth avoided a suplex, he hit a kick to the chest, Lashley avoided a scissors kick and Truth ran the ropes leading to Lashley hitting a Spear for the pinfall win at 1:40.

Winner by pinfall: Bobby Lashley

Analysis: * A squash win for Lashley as WWE tries to continue to book him strong. I don’t know if there will be an alliance with MVP, but that would be good for Lashley if that were the case.

There was a King Corbin pre-match promo talking about how he’s going to win the Money in the Bank ladder match. Corbin spouted the same “risk is worth the reward” phrase we have heard repeatedly for the last month.

Bayley was shown walking backstage with the Smackdown Women’s Title and her buddy Sasha Banks was with her. Kayla Braxton showed up for an interview to ask questions, but Bayley interrupted before Banks could say anything. Banks never said a word. Tamina was up next as the challenger. If there were fans, would they be cheering that much? Probably not. Tamina isn’t very interesting as a face.

Smackdown Women’s Championship: Bayley (w/Sasha Banks) vs. Tamina

Bayley shoved Tamina in the face repeatedly followed by trash-talking and some weak punches, but Tamina came back with a clothesline to the back. Tamina drove Bayley back first into the turnbuckle followed by a suplex for two. Tamina got mad at Bayley for being disrespectful so Banks apologized for Bayley. Tamina with a body slam leading to Bayley rolling out of the ring. Bayley tripped up Tamina and she whipped Tamina’s right leg into the ring post two times. Bayley continued to attack the right knee of Tamina. Bayley kicked the back of the right leg of Tamina along with an elbow drop. Tamina set up Bayley against the turnbuckle leading to a running splash and Tamina hit a running hip attack against the turnbuckle. Tamina hit a superkick with the injured right leg, but Bayley caught the leg and slapped on a kneebar submission. Tamina got to the ropes to break the hold. Tamina shoved Bayley down, but Bayley hit a running knee to the face. Bayley put Tamina on her shoulders and then Tamina landed on Bayley because Bayley was unable to hit a move. Bayley left the ring leading to Bayley ramming Jax’s chest against the apron and Bayley said she could use some water, so Bayley tossed water in Tamina’s face to insult her. Tamina fired up by sending Bayley into the ropes and hit a clothesline. Tamina sent Bayley into the barricade. Tamina was in control in the ring with a Samoan Drop attempt, but Bayley got the apron and Tamina hit a superkick to send Bayley out of the ring. Tamina left the ring and tossed Bayley over the announce table at ringside. Tamina brought Bayley back into the ring, Tamina went up top slowly and Tamina jumped off with nothing as Bayley got her feet up. Tamina with a superkick and a Samoan Drop. Banks crawled into the ring, she didn’t do anything, but it prevented Tamina from going for a cover. Banks ran away, Tamina got a hold of her briefly, then Tamina went after Bayley and Bayley countered a Samoan Drop into a pinfall where she hooked the arms down on the match to win by pin at 10:30.

Winner by pinfall: Bayley

Analysis: ** It was below average with Bayley trying her best to sell as much as she can to make Tamina look interesting. Tamina is one of the slowest moving wrestlers I’ve ever seen. I know that is part of what Tamina is supposed to be, but it just looks painful when she does basic stuff in the ring and it looks like a struggle. Anyway, even though Tamina is a veteran she was booked as a dumb person that was distracted by Banks even when Tamina had the match won. The last two minutes or so were okay, but it was just slow paced match before that.

Post match, Banks went into the ring to save Bayley again by hitting a chop block to the knee of Tamina. Banks hit a running knee on Tamina. Banks handed the SD Women’s Title to Bayley. Banks and Bayley celebrated at ringside.

Analysis: I assume that Tamina is out of the title picture for now, but we may get Tamina beating Banks on Smackdown as revenge for the post match attack.

A commercial aired for Total Bellas. Poor Daniel Bryan.

Seth Rollins did a backstage promo saying that Drew McIntyre knows that it is Seth’s destiny to become the WWE Champion. Seth said he admired Drew’s courage so much so that he was going to do Drew the favor of his life tonight. It was the same promo he always does as the Monday Night Messiah talking about how people need him.

The announcers talked about The Undertaker (and Cole said Taker’s real name Mark Calaway) documentary called The Last Ride on WWE Network. It premiered early on Sunday, but they are plugging it airing after Money in the Bank.

A video package aired for Braun Strowman vs. Bray Wyatt for the Universal Title.

Bray Wyatt entered as the challenger in the DREADED RED SWEATER~! and some unique dance moves on his way to the ring as the Firefly Fun House song played. Braun Strowman was up next as the Universal Champion. Wyatt waved at his buddy as Braun entered the arena.

Universal Championship: Braun Strowman vs. Bray Wyatt

Strowman with a punch to the ribs followed by a shoulder tackle and some manly groaning. Wyatt laughed about it. Wyatt: “You are strong.” Braun said he’s not the same boy that he used to be. Strowman hit another shoulder tackle leading to Wyatt bailing to the floor. Strowman sent Wyatt into the steel steps and then Braun sent Bray into the ring post. Back in the ring, Strowman hit a running shoulder tackle and Wyatt fell out of the ring. Strowman charged at Wyatt on the floor, but Bray moved and Bray sent Braun into the side of the announce table. Strowman took a hard fall over the table onto the floor. Huskus The Pig was in the crowd telling Wyatt he can do it as Wyatt hit Strowman with a DDT on the floor. Back in the ring, Wyatt hit a running clothesline followed by a senton splash. Wyatt whipped Strowman into the steel steps. Back in the ring, Wyatt did his upside-down pose in the corner, but Strowman punched him in the chest. Wyatt with a kick followed by a Tornado DDT off the middle ropes. Wyatt hit the Sister Abigail for a two count about five minutes into the match. Wyatt was shocked that it was only a two count. Wyatt teased a Sister Abigail again, but Strowman blocked it and hit a Chokeslam. Strowman with a two running corner splashes and he sent Wyatt out of the ring. Strowman ran at Wyatt with a running shoulder tackle that sent Wyatt into the barricade. When Strowman was on the apron, Wyatt kicked Strowman out of the ring. While Strowman was on the floor, Braun put on a Black Sheep mask and Bray laughed about it saying: “It’s you!” Wyatt said he knew he would find you. Strowman went into the ring, Braun ripped off his shirt and Bray said that this time everything will be perfect. Braun got down to his knees beside Bray and when Bray got back up, Braun extended his hands for a hug. They hugged in the middle of the ring. The other Firefly Fun House puppets were at ringside saying Braun is home. Braun took off the mask, Bray told him to trust Bray and Braun stomped on the mask. Strowman with a Running Powerslam for the pinfall win at 10:55.

Winner by pinfall: Braun Strowman

Analysis: **1/2 This was an average match with some good action early on as Wyatt hit the Sister Abigail five minutes into it only for Braun to kick out of it. The finish saw Strowman outsmart Wyatt to show that Strowman has evolved as a man and a champion, which is a sign of growth for Braun’s character. Braun winning was the right call here. I’m sure some fans hated the story at the end with the hug, but I think it fits the story of Braun learning from his past.

Post match, Braun told Bray that Bray never created him and Braun did this (winning the title) on his own. As Wyatt looked at Braun, there were images of The Fiend shown, so the feud will likely continue.

Analysis: I expect them to have another PPV match with Wyatt donning The Fiend look. I don’t know that for sure, but it seems likely.

There was a video of Smackdown’s mystery guy sitting in a room with a lot of screens. The guy said that no one is safe. A graphic saying “The Truth Will Be Heard” was shown again.

This Tuesday on Fox Sports 1 it’s a re-air of WrestleMania 3 from 1987. That’s followed by WWE Backstage. Read my WrestleMania 3 review right here if you want my thoughts on it.

A video package aired setting up Drew McIntyre defending the WWE Title against Seth Rollins. That means the two Money in the Bank matches will be the main event.

Seth Rollins made his entrance to a new theme song. No more “Burn it Down” song for Seth, which is fine because he’s a different character now. It’s an instrumental song that’s fitting for Seth’s Monday Night Messiah gimmick.

Drew McIntyre was up next as the WWE Champion. Speaking of songs, I miss Drew’s old theme song, but I have gotten used to the new song. The wrestlers stood in the ring for the championship introductions.

WWE Championship: Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins

McIntyre whipped Rollins into the ropes leading to a shoulder tackle. McIntyre ran the ropes with two more shoulder tackles followed by a clothesline that sent Rollins over the top to the floor. Drew told Seth to take his time because Drew was enjoying this and Joe said that was Drew getting into Seth’s head. Rollins got a bit of offense with punches, but McIntyre chopped and punched Seth. McIntyre with a hard corner whip, Rollins flipped upside down and McIntyre hit a hard chop into a suplex. Rollins with a dropkick to the left knee two times in a row followed by Rollins sending McIntyre shoulder first into the ring post. Rollins hit a suicide dive on McIntyre on the floor. Back in the ring, Rollins hit the Slingblade for a two count. Rollins slapped on a single leg Boston Crab submission as McIntyre crawled to try to break it and Rollins turned the submission into a STF with Joe saying there’s tremendous pressure on the back leg on that hold. Rollins slapped on a Crossface submission on the left arm. McIntyre got his right arm on the bottom rope to break the hold. McIntyre was on the floor, so Rollins hit another suicide dive onto Drew as Rollins told his opponent that this was his destiny. Rollins ran across the apron with a jumping knee attack to the face. Rollins jumped off the barricade with another knee to the face. Rollins jumped off the announce table with another knee to the face, so that’s three straight knees to the face by Seth. Rollins tried a suicide dive again, but McIntyre caught him and McIntyre hit an overhead belly to belly suplex onto the announce table. It didn’t break the table, but Rollins sold it like a big bump. Back in the ring, McIntyre with two more overhead belly to belly suplexes and a big boot to the face. McIntyre went up top with a jumping punch to the head followed by a kip up to show that Drew was fired up. McIntyre charged, but Rollins went to the apron and Rollins with a necksnap using the top rope. McIntyre avoided a knee strike followed by a spinebuster.

Rollins avoided a DDT attempt by attacking the left leg and Rollins hit a superkick for just a one count by Drew. Rollins went up top for a Frog Splash leading to another one count. That is what Drew has done in the past to show how powerful he is while Rollins looked like he was shocked by it. Rollins grabbed a steel chair from ringside, but then he changed his mind and Rollins wanted The Stomp. McIntyre countered with a Glasgow Kiss headbutt. McIntyre went up top leading to Rollins tripping him up on the turnbuckle. McIntyre with another headbutt, McIntyre up top, but Rollins hit a superplex into a Falcon Arrow slam for a two count. Rollins charged, Drew moved, Rollins was sent into the ropes and McIntyre hit a Future Shock DDT. McIntyre was punching his own left knee to get some of the feeling back. McIntyre with a hard chop to the chest while Rollins was on the turnbuckle. Rollins punched McIntyre leading to McIntyre getting tied upside down on the turnbuckle. McIntyre reached up and hit a German Suplex with Rollins landing onto his chest. McIntyre charged, but Rollins hit a superkick and The Stomp for a two count. Rollins charged, McIntyre came back with the Glasgow Kiss headbutt (hitting his own hand), then Rollins with the superkick and McIntyre hit the Claymore Kick for the pinfall win at 19:20.

Winner by pinfall: Drew McIntyre

Analysis: ****1/4 I thought this was an outstanding match. It was probably the best match at the WWE PC in the two months since we have been in this era of empty arena shows. Both guys had periods where they were in full control, then they each made comebacks and there were a lot of nearfalls. It’s a small thing, but I like how McIntyre kicks out at a one count instead of two count. It tells the viewer he’s got a lot left and he’s tough to put away. Then as the match went on, Rollins got multiple two counts to show that Drew was getting weaker. McIntyre ended up coming back to get the win, but I liked the build to the finish. Rollins nearly won with The Stomp although I didn’t think Drew was losing the title here and I doubt many fans watching this thought Rollins was going to win. Drew winning to retain the WWE Title was the right call here. I liked this match a lot. If you didn’t see this show, I would recommend checking out this match.

Post match, Drew McIntyre went into the ring and asked for a handshake. Rollins was reluctant, but Rollins shook the hand. McIntyre celebrated with the WWE Title.

Analysis: I think what that does is it puts over Drew as a fighting babyface champion that wants to battle in the ring and earn the respect of his opponents.

There were some commercials to kill some time. I didn’t pay attention because I was writing about the previous match.

R-Truth was interviewed by Charly Caruso in the backstage area. R-Truth said he was lonely and said he was going to “sack you Tom Brady” and take back his 24/7 Championship. Truth left and Charly said: “He means Rob Gronkowski.” Correct. Truth is great.

This Monday on Raw, Becky Lynch is back to confront the Money in the Bank winner and so are Edge along with Randy Orton.

Another commercial aired for The Undertaker documentary on WWE Network.

Men’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match: AJ Styles vs. Otis vs. Aleister Black vs. King Corbin vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Rey Mysterio

Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match: Lacey Evans vs. Nia Jax vs. Carmella vs. Shayna Baszler vs. Dana Brooke vs. Asuka

Good luck to me trying to write about all of this. The women were starting in the main floor lobby while the men were starting in the gym.

There was no commentary for it. The women in the front lobby were all attacked by Asuka, who knocked them down and then Asuka went up the elevator. I missed it live, but went back to watch as Asuka jumped off a balcony about ten feet high to knock down the five other women. That was cool. Black hit Mysterio with a kick to the face while near some equipment. Bryan kicked Corbin in the face. Corbin threw a barbell at Bryan, who moved and Corbin broke a window with the barbell. Corbin whipped Bryan into some gym equipment while Otis sent Styles head first into some towel machine. Otis trapped Styles under some barbells and Styles sold it like he was trapped while Rey refused to help Styles. The guys were all running around the bathroom area. Mysterio went into the bathroom where Brother Love walked out of a stall to tell Rey he loved him. Rey said he loved him too, but Rey had to go. That was funny. Hello Bruce Prichard. Four of the guys were fighting in a lobby waiting for elevators. It led to Corbin, Bryan, Black and Otis all going in elevators. It was back to the ladies as Evans, Carmella and Baszler were shown going up the stairs and the guys exited an elevator. Asuka was shown in another elevator. Baszler whipped Evans and Carmella into a wall while Asuka ran away. Bryan worked over Corbin with Yes Kicks as Otis said “Yes” repeatedly, so Bryan kicked Otis in the chest as well. While all of that was going on, some guy in a clown costume was shown behind a chair. I guess that’s supposed to be Doink The Clown, but it didn’t really look like him. The women were shown in a hallway with Jax sending Carmella into an office and Carmella took Brooke into the same office. Jax and Baszler got into it with Jax hitting a headbutt on Baszler. Brooke hit Jax in the back with a steel chair. Brooke grabbed a Money in the Bank briefcase that was in the room and Stephanie McMahon said that they were destroying the room. Stephanie told Dana that the briefcase was on the roof. So Dana isn’t very bright for thinking that briefcase won her the match? Poor girl. I think she’s pretty, though. Stephanie was obviously not there at the same time, but they edited it to make it look that way. Carmella got a portrait that had her image on it and she hit Brooke with it. When Carmella exited the room, Evans hit her with a punch.

Styles was in a hallway looking for Mysterio and Styles was against a wall where he saw a photo of The Undertaker, so Styles acted like he was scared after losing to Undertaker in a Boneyard Match at WrestleMania. Styles opened up a room where he saw a casket as Styles had Boneyard Match flashbacks again. Black showed up and kicked Styles into the room with the casket. Styles screamed “no” and was left in the room. Paul Heyman was shown in WWE HQ at a table that was full of food when a bunch of the men and women went into the room. Otis got some food in his hands, so he was fired up as he yelled: “Food fight!” Otis threw a tray of food at Heyman. The wrestlers threw food at eachother while Baszler choked out Mysterio and Jax and Otis did a double splash on Rey together. Brooke sent Carmella into Jax, so Jax turned around looking pissed off and Jax sent Brooke back first into a vending machine. Jax picked up Carmella and gave her a Powerbomb through a table that had food on it. Otis found his way towards some desert and he had a pie in his hand. John Laurinaitis showed up in a scooter, he said “People Power” and Otis sent the pie into his face. Asuka showed up asking a janitor where the roof is, but she was speaking Japanese, so the guy had no idea how to answer. The women chased after Asuka and Brooke slipped on the wet floor. Jax sent Baszler into a wall and Jax punched Evans in the back. Asuka was ahead of the other women, but Jax was right behind her. The women were on some stairs heading up another floor. Black whipped Bryan into a wall and Styles emerged from a room to punch Black. Bryan sent Styles into a room and it was Vince McMahon’s office. Vince stood up in a chair as his theme song played, which was silly, but that’s what this match is. Vince yelled at Bryan and Styles to get out of there. Bryan and Styles rearranged the chairs that they messed up and then they left the room. Vince cleaned his hands with some hand sanitizer. That was mildly funny, pal.

Styles told Bryan he acted like a coward, Bryan said AJ wanted them to put the chairs back and they went back to fighting again. Corbin attacked both Bryan and Styles with a scepter shot to the ribs. Corbin also punched Black. They went into another office with a long table and Corbin beat up Styles as well as Bryan. Corbin said he was going to the roof.

There was an exterior shot of the building that showed the ring set up with the ladders and the Money in the Bank briefcases were above the ring.

The trio of Asuka, Jax and Evans were the first three wrestlers on the roof. Jax was dominant as she sent Asuka and Evans out of the ring while Jax brought a ladder into the ring. Jax set up a ladder to try for a climb, but Asuka stopped her. Evans got back into the ring leading to a Woman’s Right punch by Evans on Jax. Evans tried to climb, but Asuka pulled Lacey’s leg to prevent a climb. Asuka also shoved a ladder onto Jax. Evans rammed Asuka’s head into the ladder repeatedly. Evans did a climb on the ladder, but Asuka pulled Evans down When Asuka went up the ladder, Evans went up with her and Asuka elbowed Evans onto Jax below them. Asuka climbed up the ladder, then Corbin showed up to try to stop her for some reason and Asuka knocked Corbin down. Asuka retrieved the white Money in the Bank briefcase. The women’s match went 22:02.

Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match Winner: Asuka

Analysis: I’m not going to rate either of these matches with star ratings because they are pre-produced and edited rather than something that goes in a ring. Asuka getting the win is fine with me because she’s one of the best women’s wrestlers in the company. They had some cool spots in the match along with a bit of comedy where Brooke was slipping on a wet floor and also the food fight moment. It was odd that they would only book three women to be on the top of the building, but I guess that’s an easier way of doing it. Corbin trying to stop Asuka didn’t make sense, though. Anyway, I’m fine with Asuka winning. My pick was Shayna Baszler, but I’m not upset about being wrong here. Asuka is a fine choice.

Otis was on the roof going for a ladder climb, but he’s too fat and broke the ladder steps. Corbin was back up and Otis knocked him down leading to the Caterpillar elbow by Otis. Black joined the party and he battled with Mysterio over a ladder. Styles showed up to knock down Black. Corbin grabbed Mysterio and tossed him over the side of the building leading to a landing on something that we couldn’t see. Corbin also tossed Black over the side onto some other structure. Bryan got to the roof to make it a four-man battle for now. Corbin sent Bryan into the ring post. Styles hit a forearm on Otis followed by a Phenomenal Forearm. Styles did a slow climb up a ladder, but Corbin was there on the other side of the ladder. They were going for the green briefcase hanging from an apparatus. Styles unhooked the briefcase, but Corbin was hanging onto it and Elias hit Corbin the back with a guitar. Styles let go of the briefcase and the briefcase fell into the hands of…Otis, who didn’t even climb the ladder. That means Otis is Mr. Money in the Bank! Yes, it really happened. The men’s match went 27:15.

Men’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match: Otis

Analysis: Once again I’m not using star ratings for this. I’m absolutely shocked that Otis would get the kind of push that would see him win this match. I know he main evented the last two weeks of Smackdown and I know that management (particularly Vince McMahon) is high on him, but I didn’t expect WWE to have Otis win this match. I thought Styles should win and I still think that, so we’ll see how it goes in terms of Otis’ run as Mr. Money in the Bank. The two big spots on the roof were when Corbin sent Mysterio and Black over the side of the building onto something on the other side. We didn’t see where they landed, but I doubt WWE is going to say tossed off the building. I posted an image below to show you what the wide shot looked like. As I wrote in the review, I think there was some structure there that they can use to explain it. The Otis win may have happened because wanted a feel good moment and Otis was getting big reactions from the crowds two months ago. I just didn’t think WWE would actually push him to where he won Money in the Bank.

Otis celebrated with the Money in the Bank briefcase while giving a shoutout to “girlfriend” Mandy Rose. They showed a replay of Styles fumbling the briefcase that went right into the hands of Otis. The announcers spoke briefly to summarize Otis and Asuka as the two big winners. That was the end of the show.

WHAT A NIGHT.#MITB@WWEAsuka@otiswwepic.twitter.com/s0FjX01XYI

— WWE (@WWE) May 11, 2020

Analysis: I liked the presentation of both ladder matches. It wasn’t as good as the Boneyard Match at WrestleMania in terms of entertaining me, but I was able to enjoy it and have some laughs during the comedy spots as well.

This event had a runtime of 2:23:48 on WWE Network.

Analysis: It is one of the shortest WWE PPVs in decades. I can understand WWE not wanting to run longer, but I figured it would be close to three hours. Nope. It was less than an episode of Raw. I’m certainly not going to complain about having a shorter show for a change.

Regarding the Mysterio/Black bumps, I circled the black padding that they landed on. It’s not like WWE is going to tell us they landed on that, but WWE aired this wide shot during the show.

I’m only posting that because WWE shared this image of the roof showing the crash pad landing a few minutes before the wrestlers were “thrown off the building” or at least that’s what fans are joking about. I assume Mysterio and Black will be back within a few weeks, but that’s up to WWE.

Regarding the Otis victory, he said in an interview prior to the MITB airing that he would go after the Tag Team Titles with Tucker if he won, so that’s what happened. I’m not sure if WWE told Otis to say that or if it’s him saying it.

Five Stars of the Show

1. Drew McIntyre
2. Seth Rollins
3. Asuka
4. Otis
5. Big E/Kofi Kingston

Final Thoughts

I’m going with a 6.75 out of 10 for this show.

It was an entertaining show for the most part with Drew McIntyre and Seth Rollins having an outstanding match that is worth checking out if you missed it. I think it was the best match in the empty arena WWE PC so far, especially in terms of a singles match. The opening Fatal 4-Way tag team match was also very good. The other matches were fine and nothing was terrible, which is a plus.

The two Money in the Bank Ladder Matches were unique with outcomes I didn’t expect. Otis winning is a big surprise to me, but clearly, WWE is high on the guy and maybe Vince McMahon loves his Chris Farley impressions. I don’t know what it is. Asuka had a good showing in the women’s match and she has been very entertaining in this empty arena era. If you take wrestling too seriously all the time then you’ll probably hate stuff like these Money in the Bank ladder matches in WWE Headquarters. Once in a while, I enjoy the campy side of wrestling and that’s what this was. There were bumps slipping on a wet floor, two guys got thrown off the building and even a food fight along with some cameos from various WWE office staff. I thought it worked pretty well, but as I wrote in the review I liked the Boneyard Match more if I had to compare them.

This show was shorter than Raw, which is a plus. A lot of WWE shows run too long. This one did not run too long, so thanks to WWE for that.

=====

That’s all for me. Check out the full list of my WWE PPV Review archive right here.

Thanks for reading. My contact info is below.

John Canton

Email mrjohncanton@gmail.com

Twitter @johnreport