WWE Money in the Bank: Ranking the 5 Greatest MITB matches of all time
WWE will offer one Superstar the chance to become a world champion next month when the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut, hosts the Money in the Bank pay-per-view.
Aside from winning the Royal Rumble, the Money in the Bank briefcase is one of the only guaranteed methods a Superstar has to earn an opportunity for the WWE Championship or Universal Championship.
Since the match's debut at WrestleMania to its evolution into a separate event, very few ladder matches carry the same level of excitement and interest that the Money in the Bank match has offered over the years.
The briefcase has always served as a catalyst to push new stars into the main event scene, and is responsible for key moments in the careers of superstars like CM Punk, Edge, Rob Van Dam, Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and many more.
Anyone who's been lucky enough to become Mr. or Mrs. Money in the Bank usually goes on to have a successful run as Champion, but their performance in the Money in the Bank match is usually a good indicator of what the Superstar will be like as a Champion.
Some of the greatest Money in the Bank cash-ins have come off the momentum of incredible ladder match performances and there have been more than 20 MITB ladder matches over the years.
Here are the five greatest Money in the Bank ladder matches in WWE history.
#5 WrestleMania 24 - (Carlito vs. Chris Jericho vs. CM Punk vs. John Morrison vs. MVP vs. Mr. Kennedy vs. Shelton Benjamin)
WrestleMania 24 was home to an incredible Money in the Bank match with a lot of interwoven storylines and callbacks.
The match started with everyone scrambling to grab a ladder, which lead to MVP, John Morrison and Chris Jericho jousting with ladders before someone finally dropped.
Shelton Benjamin is usually the Superstar who does the most amazing spots in the match, but Morrison kicked off the highlight reel by hitting a moonsault to the wrestlers outside with a ladder in hand.
Benjamin's moment would be the result of Carlito and Mr. Kennedy dumping him off the tallest ladder in the ring, and sending him crashing through another.
MVP had the match won towards the end, but a returning Matt Hardy would get revenge on his former tag partner and rival.
Mr. Kennedy seemed like he was going to win the match, but CM Punk would throw him off the ladder (similarly to how Kennedy cost him the briefcase at WrestleMania 23) and became Mr. Money in the Bank for the first time.
Punk would go on to win the World Heavyweight Championship, his first world title reign since becoming the ECW Champion the year before.