Since its inception at WrestleMania 21, the Money in the Bank briefcase has become one of the most prized possessions in pro wrestling.
A metaphorical golden ticket to a championship match of choice, the Money in the Bank briefcase provides an opportunity for the owner to “cash in” at any time, any place, within a year of winning it.
The MITB briefcase has helped spur the careers of WWE legends, such as CM Punk, Edge, Rob Van Dam and The Miz, who all won their first World Championship via cash-in.
Two-time World Heavyweight Champion Dolph Ziggler, now known as Nic Nemeth in TNA, knows firsthand how valuable the Money in the Bank contract can be.
The former WWE superstar successfully cashed in on Alberto Del Rio in 2013 to secure his first World Heavyweight Championship.
Considered an underdog for most of his career, Nemeth (then Ziggler) used the briefcase to elevate himself to main event status.
In an exclusive interview shared with Heavy, Nemeth said that he believes the Money in the Bank should be reserved for rising stars trying to claw their way to the top, not established megastars.
“When you’re already in the gold circle, get the hell out of here. You can show up on a Monday or Friday and go, I’m fighting for that title, and everyone goes, yay! Save that other stuff for us,” Nemeth told Casino.org.
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Money in the Bank has largely been a tool for midcard wrestlers to elevate into the WWE elite.
Edge, CM Punk and Nemeth (formerly Dolph Ziggler) all experienced a meteoric rise after successfully cashing in the Money in the Bank briefcase.
Given its star-making ability, Nemeth detests when WWE superstars with cemented legacies win the prized briefcase.
“Guys like Brock [Lesnar] and [John] Cena, I hated when they were champs or they had the briefcase because you can just show up on Monday and say, I’m fighting for the world title, and that’s the same thing. So once in a while when that happened, but it was cool. I’m pretty sure Cena was banging the briefcase on Big Show’s head or something and it broke off in his hands; I get it,” Nemeth told Casino.org. “But at the same time, I think that’s really for guys like me and Miz and maybe Christian even back then, because we’re fighting to try and make it to that top spot and to have something that a Brock Lesnar didn’t need – He was hilarious and used it as a boombox, but he didn’t need that.”
This year, four of the six participants in the men’s Money in the Bank match have never been World Champion. This means there is a good chance that, like Nemeth desires, the vaunted briefcase could birth a new megastar.
Penta, Bron Breakker, Je’Von Evans and Trick Williams will compete against former World Champions CM Punk and Kevin Owens in a ladder match on Oct. 10 at Money in the Bank.
WWE Money in the Bank will be held at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans.
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