WWE Money in the Bank 2015: The full rundown and why you should care

WWE will hold the fifth annual Money in the Bank pay-per-view on Sunday night, which is also the 10th year that the Money in the Bank match itself has been in existence. The multi-person ladder match is for a briefcase, which contains a guaranteed world title shot any time, any place for the holder, good for up to one year from the time it is won. Of the 15 men to cash in the Money in the Bank briefcase, only two have failed to win the world title. (One of those two was John Cena, so that doesn’t really count.) The most recent Money in the Bank winner, Seth Rollins, cashed in his contract at WrestleMania and is the current WWE World Heavyweight Champion.

In other words, Money in the Bank is kind of a big deal. It’s also just one of seven matches happening on Sunday night. So let’s take a look at the full card and find out exactly what’s going on and what you can expect.

What am I looking at here? R-Truth, after having spent the past several years in some weird sort of midcard limbo, is suddenly one of the most legitimately entertaining people in the company, likely nearing the end of his career and just having a blast. King Barrett should be enjoying the prime of his career, but will bizarrely win things like the Intercontinental Championship or King of the Ring, then win zero matches for months on end. There’s a portrait of Barrett in an attic somewhere that keeps accruing meaningful accomplishments.

Why you should care: R-Truth should keep things fun. Yes, R-Truth is who I’m anticipating will be the bright spot here. Bad News Barrett, where have you gone?

What am I looking at here? Naomi has apparently gotten lost at sea, so these are the two women in the Divas division now. If you happen to get confused, Paige is the pale one. She’s also the one who isn’t twins.

Why you should care: It’ll probably be a good match! A match we’ve seen MANY times before, but that’s what happens when there are only two women being given any screen time on any given week. Maybe like five NXT women will do a run-in and form some awesome lady Nexus. That’s probably not going to happen, though. Sorry. That made me sad, too.

What am I looking at here? Ryback is fresh off winning his first singles title two weeks ago and just picked the Big Show up over his head last week. He’s hungry, but that probably isn’t related to those things he did. Big Show is the world’s largest athlete and he’s just come back from a little time off. I think he’s a bad guy again? Probably. It’s like the weather in Hawaii: if you don’t like Big Show’s alignment, wait 10 minutes.

Why you should care: Do you like clubbering? PREPARE FOR CLUBBERING, HOSS-STYLE. This will be the biggest rock ‘em, sock ‘em heavyweight fight of the evening. Two big lugs throwing those soup bones. Me typing the previous three sentences has gotten me more excited for this match than the on-television buildup.

What am I looking at here? The New Day consists of three men, who defend the tag team titles under the “Freebird rule,” although in Sunday’s match it will likely be Xavier Woods and Big E doing the defending with Kofi Kingston in the Money in the Bank match. They want you to clap and say “NEW. DAY ROCKS.” with them. They do NOT want you to say “NEW. DAY SUCKS.” It makes them angry and prone to cheating. The Prime Time Players are a recently reunited team worth millions of dollars, so it’s good that they’re consolidating their assets again.

Why you should care: The New Day is one of the best things in the WWE right now, just relentlessly entertaining. Meanwhile, Titus O’Neil and Darren Young have been reinvigorated by suddenly being back on TV again and O’Neil in particular has never looked better in the ring. I’m not expecting a title change on Sunday, but I also wouldn’t be shocked if PTP picks up their first championship.

What am I looking at here? This is one of the three main events of the evening. John Cena, current United States champion, stands for hustle, loyalty and respect. Kevin Owens, current NXT champion, stands for providing for his family and being a good dad, which sometimes means telling your son that his hero John Cena sucks and that you’re going to beat his hero up to make a paycheck.

Why you should care: Kevin Owens, in his first match on the main WWE roster, beat John Cena clean as a whistle in an impressive, star-making match. So they’re having another match just two weeks later. Every last morsel of pro wrestling fan cynicism says that Cena will win the rematch, but there’s a chance Owens can beat him again. Just the tiniest, most minuscule chance. It’s not going to happen. Cena is going to win this match. But that one tiny, TINY bit of uncertainty ... that’s the best thing about being a wrestling fan. It’s exciting. This is exactly why we watch.

What am I looking at here? Roman Reigns is a former member of the Shield and this year’s Royal Rumble winner, although he took the pinfall in the main event of WrestleMania. He’s benefited incredibly from being out of the limelight the past couple of months. Dolph Ziggler is currently involved in a quasi-story with Lana and Rusev, who would probably be in this match if he wasn’t injured at the moment. Sheamus and Randy Orton are former multi-time world champions who don’t really have anything to do at the moment, so don’t be surprised if this match leads to a feud between the two of them. Kane is the Authority’s corporate stooge and inserted himself into the match. Kofi Kingston is super good and jumping and coming up with extremely creative things to do in ladder matches and multi-person matches. Neville is even BETTER at jumping and could have a legitimate breakout performance here, much like Shelton Benjamin did in the first couple of Money in the Bank matches.

Why you should care: Multi-person ladder matches are always fun, even if they end up being just a cringe-y train wreck. (Yes, I realize two weeks ago I said Elimination Chamber matches are always fun. I didn’t know how wrong I could be. I really mean it this time.) Also, the Money in the Bank briefcase lends intrigue and an X-factor to just about everything as long as someone is holding it. Even though the winner in this one seems like a fairly foregone conclusion (Reigns), the wildness of the match and uncertainty about what will happen afterward will more than make up for any predictability.

What am I looking at here? Seth Rollins is the “chosen boy” world champion of the Authority, although he has recently had a split with Kane and his personal bodyguards, J&J Security. He’s become something of a punchline so he’s looking for a chance to really prove himself and back up his boasting. Dean Ambrose is Rollins’ former teammate and appeared to have the world title won at Elimination Chamber, although the decision was changed to a victory by disqualification. That didn’t stop him from running off with the title and demanding this ladder match, where there must be a decisive winner.

Why you should care: Once again, there’s always a CHANCE that they could do a title change. There’s also a CHANCE that no matter who wins, the Money in the Bank winner (Reigns) will immediately cash in his briefcase and take the title for himself. Also, Dean and Seth are terrific together and I’m expecting this ladder match to knock our socks off.

The top three matches on this show should be great and none of us really know what’s going to happen in them. That’s pretty much all you can ask for in a WWE PPV.