On this day in WWE history - Big E cashes in MITB to become the new WWE Champion
Big E became one of the biggest stars in WWE, with enormous untapped potential. He is a big, fast, and agile wrestler who was always destined to be a main event star. Since beginning his early days in WWE's developmental system, FCW, and later NXT, he showed signs that he had every qualification to ascend to the next level in the promotion.
Fast forward to September 13, 2021. Bobby Lashley was the reigning WWE Champion on RAW and had just defeated Randy Orton. However, his celebrations were short-lived as Big E came down to ringside and cashed in his Money in the Bank contract.
A visibly fatigued Bobby Lashley was ready for the challenge as the bell rang to start the championship match. Lashley did everything he could to fight off Big E and had things going his way at one point. But in the end, it was the New Day member who came out victorious, connecting with the Big Ending to get the pinfall victory.
The newly crowned champion celebrated his victory alongside The New Day and the rest of the WWE Universe.
Big E received a lot of love from WWE fellow stars after his win
The New Day member was interviewed backstage following his championship victory. E had a lot to say about his victory, but he started by acknowledging the contributions of his best friends and how grateful he was to have Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods by his side.
“I think the dream for anyone in any vocation of craft or anything is getting to [not only] do really cool things and get to the top of your craft but to do it with your best friends. I always tell this story because I never wanna forget. I will always remember the three of us just fighting to get on TV."
He then recalled how the three men had grown as performers and as a person together. He also stated that the victory felt "earned."
"We have been able to do so many cool incredible things. I got to grow so much as a person, as a performer because of these guys. I could not have written a better career for myself. I am glad, in many ways that it took so long because it feels earned.”
His fellow WWE Superstars took a moment to react to his championship victory. From Bayley to Becky Lynch, Big E's co-workers showered a lot of praise for the multi-time tag team champion. They expressed their happiness and showcased how much E is loved backstage.
Check out some responses below:
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!! REAL HAPPINESS!!!! @WWEBigE You are incredible twitter.com/WWE/status/143…
Congratulations @WWEBigE 🔥
Going to be a champion we all can be proud of. I know it! twitter.com/WWE/status/143…
I can’t remember the last time I was so genuinely happy to see someone win the big one.
Alpha approved. 100%. twitter.com/WWE/status/143…
The best.
Congratulations @WWEBigE https://t.co/XCnnhx4st5
Big E's title reign came to an end at Day 1
The former tag team champion held on to the WWE Championship for approximately 110 days. He lost the title at Day 1 (2022) in a Fatal Five-way match to Brock Lesnar.
E took a moment to reflect on his championship loss during an interview on the Superstar Crossover with Josh Martinez, as he felt he could've had a longer title reign and could have done more. He stated that he would do several things differently.
"There are several things I would do differently. My focus really is just on performing, I do the best I can. I wish it would have lasted longer and we would have had that period to produce more dynamic things. It's difficult to latch on to a new champion when, within the first month, they have multiple losses on TV. We can go down this path."
Big E is currently out of action after suffering a broken neck due to a botched Belly-to-Belly Suplex attempt by Ridge Holland on WWE SmackDown in March of this year. Thankfully, he did not require surgery for the injury. However, it remains to be seen when the beloved superstar will be able to grace our TV screens once again.
Are you excited to see Big E return to action once again? Let us know in the comments section below.