WWE Money in the Bank 2023 review: London Calling!

Righto, part three in my 2023 WWE PLE review catch up. And next up in our wrestling writing time machine we find ourselves here in England, for one of WWE’s most eagerly anticipated events Money in the Bank! So, let’s see what went down back in July.

Who claimed the briefcases? What were the highs? Were there any lows? Did the London crowd live up to expectation? And did Roman’s cousins finally stop carrying his bags and kick his Tribal arse? Well, let’s take a look…

1. Men’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Damian Priest vs. LA Knight vs. Butch vs. Logan Paul vs. Ricochet vs. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Santos Escobar

Many came into this one wanting to see megastar LA Knight get the briefcase but I actually thought they would give this one to Logan Paul, thankfully though it would be Judgment Day muscle Damian Priest that got the contract in a really enjoyable Men’s Money in the Bank opener. Replete with some of the big spots you expect, there were a few missteps but everyone put in a good shift and I don’t know how Logan and Ricochet’s final bump didn’t end in tragedy but am grateful it didn’t. Nice to see Priest get the rub, he deserves it.

2. WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships

Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler (c) vs. Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez

What’s this I see before me? Why it’s the titles that PLE’s forgot. Nice to see something, anything, being done with the women’s tag belts. That said there was little to this at all, other than the ending which saw Shayna Baszler surprising turn on her friend Ronda Rousey, giving the challengers the chance they needed to win. Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez are the new champs. And that was that really.

3. WWE Intercontinental Championship Match

Gunther (c) vs. Matt Riddle

Though Gunther can’t really have a bad match, this match with Matt Riddle was probably his least memorable defence in his title run. Nothing outright bad but this just felt like any standard match you’d see on any weekly show and the result was never in question as Gunther retained in fast and unimpactful match. The only thing memorable about it was the aftermath, where Drew McIntyre returned to stare down the champion and set up a Summer cracker of a title match!

4. Cody Rhodes vs. Dominik Mysterio w/ Rhea Ripley

Dominik Mysterio is a red hot heel and his work has truly impressed, though this match with Cody Rhodes was never really in question and while it chugged along ok, again it was an undercard affair that was missable. This was clearly just a slot filler for Cody before his third and final match with Brock Lesnar.

Next up John Cena made a shock appearance to the delight of the London capacity audience, where he put over English crowds and suggested WrestleMania should come to London! Out came Grayson Waller to disagree and talk smack, leading to him getting a smack and being laid out with an Attitude Adjustment. Inessential but nice to see (so to speak) Cena.

5. Women’s Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Bayley vs. Iyo Sky vs. Becky Lynch vs. Trish Stratus vs. Zoey Stark vs. Zelina Vega 

This was an oddly assembled match, with two teams represented in the line-up, though it certainly got going nicely, with many things arguably working better than the earlier match. Favouring ongoing stories over a plethora of spots, this match was fun, and ended with a nice sequence that saw a clever Iyo Sky get the briefcase by handcuffing Becky Lynch to her own Damage Ctrl teammate Bayley. A nice spotlight for Iyo.

6. WWE World Heavyweight Championship Match

Seth “Freakin’” Rollins (c) vs. Finn Balor

There is a history between these two, especially where new titles are concerned but I think we all knew that Finn Balor would not be dethroning Seth Rollins just yet. Though the climactic cash in tease from Damian Priest suggested something might go down, alas all that did was Balor, who was felled by a Curb Stomp to see Rollins retain amidst the Damian distraction. Enjoyable stuff but not on the level these two can take it to. The story was Judgment Day friction really more than the title.

7. “Bloodline Civil War” Tag Team Match

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

This was the best Bloodline moment since any of the Sami Zayn stuff for me, after turning on Roman at Night of Champions, there was a renewed energy to this story, after the post-Mania ho-hum. The Usos “civil war” with Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa made for some compelling TV and this tag team war payoff certainly lived up to the build. I really enjoyed this and WWE finally pulled the trigger shockingly by having Roman take the losing pinfall in this all out fight in the family. The story was great, as was the back and forth action, which ultimately came down to some chaos on the outside of the ring, leaving Solo down and out and us primed for a breathtaking closing stretch as we saw all the dirty tactics catch up on Roman, as he was low blowed by Jey during a spear kickout. Dual superkicks and a frogsplash from Jey later, and 1-2-3, Roman was served his first pinfall loss since 2019! What a refreshing change of pace for this angle and a WWE PLE main event. 

Overall, Money in the Bank delivered with most of its marquee matches but had a forgettable undercard which hampered the momentum and did not feel quite as earth-shaking as an event on this scale should. Though the tease of a UK WrestleMania had me excited.

Well, we are rolling onwards in our wrestling time jump, as we move on next to August 5th and the biggest party of the Summer, SummerSlam.