Money in the Bank Predicitons

Predictions for WWE Money in the Bank 2023 

Men’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match: Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura vs.LA Knight vs. Santos Escobar vs. Butch vs. Damian Priest vs. Logan Paul 

In thinking of who will win this match, on the surface it seem fairly straight forward; it was time for LA. KNIGHT (YEAH), but as I’ve reflected back on it, and with the addition of Logan Paul, I’m not so certain anymore. I’ve noticed that they have been saying how the contract guarantees the holder a title shot, not just a World Title match. Last year, Austin Theory attempted to cash in his contract on the US champion, but was unsuccessful, so I think it is possible WWE is setting it up that the winner could go after any title, which really makes the match wide open. You don’t expect Ricochet, Butch, Santos Escobar, despite their talents, to be legitimate threats to Rollins or Roman Reigns, but if you factor not only the US and Intercontinental titles, but the NXT titles as well, then it certainly evens the playing field from a storyline perspective. Also, at this point it also seems extremely unlikely that they would end Roman’s tremendously long title run with someone cashing in a MIB contract on him. The least likely winner is actually the home countryman, the former WWE United Kingdom Champion when he was known as Pete Dunne, Butch. There really isn’t much catalyst to Butch being involved in any titles at the moment. He and his Brawling Brute cohorts are united with no apparent dissention. Butch is a great in-ring competitor, especially when you consider he is under 6’ and often paired with opponents who are much taller and heavier. I don’t see Butch getting in the mix for any singles titles yet, although a match between he and Austin Theory could be amazing, it doesn’t seem like this is the time or place for that push to begin. In a similar situation to Butch is Santos Escobar. He is with an established faction, the LWO, which doesn’t show any signs of breaking up, but also has no real heat with any of the current Smackdown or RAW title holders. He could go to NXT and challenge for a belt, but I don’t know that it elevates him, the LWO or the storyline. There is the chance that the WWE could give the LWO a monster push by Zelina Vega winning the women’s MIB match, and have the group hold both suitcases. While an interesting twist and direction, it doesn’t seem likely. Shinsuke Nakamura is tremendously popular and accomplished WWE superstar who has held a fair share of title belts in the past. He could certainly be a viable competitor or threat to everyone, with the exception of Roman Reigns. At the moment, he has been working a program with Ricochet, which would seemingly eliminate both of them from being contenders in the match. I’d expect one of them to turn heel soon, and while Shinsuke makes an excellent heel, the more interesting turn to villainy would be with Ricochet. Suffice to say, I think Shinsuke is enough of an established commodity to always be a viable contender for a title, so no need for him to win the match. This leads to Shinsuke’s current rival, Ricochet. I could see him being a surprise winner in any other year, but with so many heavy hitters in the match, it seems that Ricochet will have an opportunity to get over with a number of high spots, particularly against Logan Paul, but ultimately not walk away with the briefcase. This is where is gets interesting. The three remaining competitors all have legitimate reasons where they could and should win the match. Logan Paul, the part time performer, but full time social media star is enormously polarizing as a competitor in WWE. He has almost Dominik Mysterio level heat with the audience. Logan is tremendously gifted athletically and has shown he takes being a WWE superstar seriously and has taken part in some stellar matches. I’m sure the WWE would enjoy the MIB briefcase being seen all over social media wherever Logan goes, maximizing his celebrity status for the WWE brand. Unfortunately, for Logan the entertaining aspect of the briefcase is the surprise cash-in, and the WWE would want to promote in advance any time Logan would be appearing, thereby undermining the potential surprise. Of the final three, I think Logan is the least likely, but it wouldn’t be a shock to see him at the top of the ladder. I am an unapologetic Damian Priest fan. Since moving to the main roster from NXT I’ve really enjoyed his matches, and watching how he has evolved his character. He seems much more comfortable with his current character and role. His match with Bad Bunny at backlash was tremendous, and while Bunny gets the lion’s share of the accolades, Damian was integral in that match being successful and coming across so well to the audience. Damien, unlike Butch and Santos, is experiencing some turmoil and strife within his group, the Judgment Day, particularly with Finn Balor. If Damien were to win, and Finn defeats Seth Rollins for the title, then there is the obvious added tension and suspicion surrounding the potential for Damien to cash in on Finn. The more I think about it, the more I like that story plays out. Damien would be my pick if it weren’t for: LA Knight. Le’me talk to ya’. LA Knight tremendously over with the fans, and there was a real missed opportunity for him when he wasn’t booked to win the Battle Royal in LA during Wrestlemanina. His popularity is undeniable and at this point, you strap a rocket to him and let him parade around with the briefcase for a year, cutting promos on everyone and building even more legitimacy for when he cashes in. 

Winner: (With everybody saying) LA Knight (YEAH) 

Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match: Zelina Vega vs. Becky Lynch vs Zoey Stark vs. Bayley vs.Iyo Sky vs. Trish Stratus 

Like the men’s ladder match, I think there are two real contenders to win the match, but I could see any of the others winning for storyline reasons. Least likely is Bayley. Arguably the most accomplished woman in match, Bayley is a grand slam champion, already won a MIB match once, as a fantastic heel she has great heat with the crowd already, but most importantly she is a main event level superstar already. The only reason I could see Bayley winning would be to further drive a wedge between she and Iyo in Damage control. In that same vein is Trish Status. Already in the hall of fame, Trish is a multi time champion and is using her experience and talent to help get Zoey Stark over with the crowd. While giving the match to Trish would certainly create tension with her and Zoey, it seems more likely that if Trish is directly involved in the finish of the match it would be to help Zoey win, so she would have to constantly be reminded to say “Thank you Trish.” Becky Lynch isn’t a contender for many of the same reasons as Bayley and Trish. As the first woman to headline wrestlemania and an enormously popular figure, whether as a heel or a babyface, Becky is a main event level superstar and doesn’t need the MIB briefcase to make herself a contender for any title. She is currently feuding with Zoey, so that might actually add to the possibility of Zoey ultimately winning. The only reason I would think to have Becky be the victor is that she hasn’t ever won a MIB match. She has come close a number of times, but never been the one holding the briefcase at the end of the night. Zelina Vega has done everything asked of her as a performer. She has been a manager for a host of different wrestlers, wrestled in essentially an enhancement capacity, worked as a heel and a babyface, worked in various tag teams, embraced the “Queen” role with an entertaining british accent, finally partnered with the LWO and gave a spectacular performance at Backlash. She is the underdog in this bout, as she is a loner like Becky, but doesn’t have near The Man’s level of accomplishments. If Liv Morgan, the ultimate underdog, had not won last year, I would say it is Zelina’s match to win. Unfortunately, I don’t think you can have the underdog win two years in a row. The timing just isn’t right for her to win this year, which is unfortunate because Zelina is a strong worker, always has fantastic matches, and really seems to be owning her character in a way I haven’t seen before. Zoey Stark is being set up to look like she is going to win, with Trish there, and the push she has been given, but I think it might be too early for her since she just got called up to the main roster. It wouldn’t surprise me if the briefcase ultimately ends up in her hands, but I think there is plenty of storyline for her with her current feud and working with Trish. This time next year, Zoey will be hard to pick against if she isn’t a champion already. The match belongs to the Genius of the Sky, Iyo Sky. Everything lines up for Iyo; she has already shown she can have tremendous matches with whoever is in the ring against her, a win would also further the splintering of damage control, and would help to introduce new faces into the championship rotation of Charlotte, Bianca, Rhea and Rhonda. Besides, I selfishly want to see Iyo and Asuka have a barn burner of a match with lots of promos where they are yelling and cursing at each other in Japanese. 

Winner: IYO SKY 

Cody Rhodes vs. Dominik Mysterio

I’m not sure what to expect here. On paper, Dominik should get blown out of the ring by Cody, so there will have to be something that hinders the American Nightmare from being able to really put Dominik in his place. I don’t know if it will be interference from Rhea or if Brock shows up and either does a run in, or pre-match beat down. It will give the crowd plenty of opportunities to boo and jeer until their heart’s content while Dominik is in control of the match. No matter how Cody gets impaired, it shouldn’t matter as he will ultimately be the one going over.

Winner: Cody Rhodes 

World Heavy Weight Championship: Seth Rollins (c) vs. Finn Balor 

It still seems too soon to take the title off of Seth, but there is every storyline reason to give this match to Finn; especially if you pair this with a Damien Priest MIB win. There is certainly fracturing in the Judgment Day, and Finn and or Damien winning their match will only help to enhance that breakup. I think Priest will interfere in the match and cause Finn to lose, either by DQ or something leading to Seth getting the pin. It will be unclear if it was deliberate or inadvertent and create further friction. 

Winner: World Heavy Weight Champion, Seth Rollins 

WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship: Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler (c) vs. Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez

The women’s tag team division is in ruins at the moment. It needs to really get reestablished, and I don’t think swapping the belts back to Liv and Raquel is the best way to do it. Rhonda and Shayna play good heel bullies and get nice heat, so if Rhonda’s contract is structured to have her work a full-time schedule, then I’d keep the belts on them and let every other team develop and chase them for a bit putting some value on the titles. 

Winner: Women’s Tag Team Champions Ronda Rousey and Shayna 

Intercontinental Championship: Gunther (c) vs. Matt Riddle

I don’t see any reason to pick against Gunther here. Matt doesn’t need the title, as he is already popular with the fans, there is the “getting revenge” aspect, but I don’t think that is worth interrupting such a long title reign. I’m sure there will be some Imperium hijinks that will get Kevin Owens and Sammy involved, but ultimately the title stays with Gunther.

Winner: Intercontinental Champion Gunther. 

The Bloodline (Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa) (with Paul Heyman) vs. The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso)

It As much as I want Jimmy and Jay to get the win here and to keep the meltdown of the bloodline story going, I think there will be some new addition to the bloodline that will screw them over. It may be too early for Ava to move up to the main roster, but maybe they can leverage Jacob Fatu? I’m not sure what it is, but never estimate the wise man. 

Winner: The Bloodline (Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa) (with Paul Heyman)