Is winning MITB a curse to most?

[Robbo89]

Before I go into this threads main point, here are all the people who have held the briefcase in the past...

CM Punk - twice
Del Rio
John Cena
Damien Sandow
Rob Van Dam
Daniel Bryan
Mr Kennedy
Edge
Jack Swagger
Dolph Ziggler
The Miz
Randy Orton
Kane

Now when you look at this list of previous winners, ask yourself this...
How many of these went on to be/already were main event talent for a LENGTHY period of time?
Punk, Edge, Orton, Kane, cena and possibly van dam (at a push)

Out of the 13 punk and edge had their careers elevated by winning the briefcase.
cena, Kane and Orton were already top talents when they won theirs.
Bryan is a top talent now but not for a consistently lengthy period.

Look at the others....won the briefcase, cashed in and suddenly all mid carders/jobbers/left the company.

This leads to my question, does holding the MITB briefcase serve as a curse to most superstars?
It seems as if talent is getting a big push after winning MITB and after cashing in, they eventually lose their title and get dropped to the mid card.

 

[JoeFromTomsRiver]

With the titles being unified, you can forget about all this. The ones who cashed in and had it be meaningless were all WHC MITB winners. Having one title, and one MITB winner, changes it up a bit. I don't think it will be a "curse" for anyone who wins it now.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

It's not a curse, it's just a waste of time.

If WWE wanted wrestlers who'd won MITB to be champions then they could've booked them to become champions. As it stands they just stumbled upon a lazy but effective way of getting cheap pops and fresh faces, though mostly temporarily, further up the card.

 

[MCMG]

Dropping a World Title can rarely be a positive thing. That is the truth regardless of MITB. Guys like Ziggler and Swagger simply weren't given anything interesting to do after they dropped the belt but that could have been avoided. Kennedy wasn't very good and giving him the briefcase is something they probably regret. Sandow was damn unlucky that Cena got injured, returned and they moved towards unifying the two titles. I reckon they wouldn't have given him the briefcase if they knew how things were going to transpire.

MITB has been a successful concept. Edge, Punk, Bryan, Del Rio, Kane and The Miz benefited massively from it. Cena and Orton were both special cases as is RVD who fucked up his chance. So besides, Swagger, Ziggler, Sandow and Kennedy it did wonders for the victors. Sandow and Ziggler (concussion) were unlucky but both, and Swagger, were given very little after their cash in/losing the belt. Definitely more of a good thing then a curse.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

A curse? Not at all. A push simply doesn't work out sometimes due to bad booking, the wrestler not really having what it takes to be in that spot or some degree of both. There are very few guarantees in wrestling, so why would MITB as a long term enhancement of a wrestler's career be any different? As with anything else, sometimes it worked for whatever reason and sometimes it didn't.

In the case of Rob Van Dam, he was given a huge push and became the first simultaneous WWE and ECW Champion. RVD ultimately sabotaged himself due to his recreational drug use and was arrested while he was champion.

When it comes to CM Punk, MITB was definitely a mixed blessing. While he wasn't used particularly well, it still got his name on people's lips to a much greater degree than previously.

As far as The Miz is concerned, I disagree that his career wasn't elevated. During the nearly 5 months he was WWE Champion, there was hardly a day that went back in which some dirtsheet writer or internet fan wasn't bitching about it. It's true that his career has gone downhill over the past 1.5 years or so, but Miz did have his time. Whether you liked him, hated it or a little of both, people were constantly talking about him and interested in seeing what he did as champion.

When it comes to Mr. Kennedy, he spent nearly half of his roughly 4 years in WWE on the shelf injured. He was injured at some point after winning MITB, a torn bicep or triceps if I remember correctly, needed surgery, so he had to drop the briefcase. Whenever he'd come back, WWE would have to start over with him, things would be going along well and something would happen to derail him again. With Kennedy, a lot of it may have simply been good old fashioned lousy luck.

Dolph Ziggler suffered a pretty nasty concussion, came back before he really should have and ran the risk of making things worse. So, he had to drop the title.

Del Rio was given a number of chances at being a main eventer in WWE, but he just never really clicked with the fans on that level. The company's been accused of not giving newer guys being elevated enough time to really get over in the past, but that certainly wasn't the case with Del Rio. The guy simply just didn't have that connection with fans that a main eventer should.

In Kane's situation, he finally had a lengthy World Championship run during the summer of 2010. He delivered some very, very strong promos even though the story of Taker being in a "vegetative state" was pretty damn goofy. Kane also scored three straight clean title defense victories over Taker during that time after Taker "recovered." So, winning MITB finally allowed Kane to accomplish a few things: have a long title run and get the better of Taker for once.

As far as Daniel Bryan, how can anyone say that his career didn't benefit from winning MITB? Hell, that surprise win at the 2011 MITB ppv was the launching point for Bryan's career. After cashing in, he had a pretty decent run as champion and became one of the most over heels in the company. While the way he dropped the title was disappointing, it certainly worked out in the end. Bryan spent the first half of 2012 either as a World Champion or trying to become a World Champion. Then he formed his unlikely partnership with Kane and it just took off in a way that nobody ever really expected. They added some long needed relevance to the tag titles, had a run that lasted nearly 250 days and Bryan's rise to being the most over guy on the roster began with his renewed singles run last summer. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither was Bryan's stardom.

The guy who ultimately got the least out of MITB was Damien Sandow, that can't be argued. Cena & Orton didn't need MITB, but they were long since established as multiple time World Champions. Ultimately, Sandow is the guy that didn't really seem to get anything out of it other than his career heading into a downward plunge.

 

[BestWrestlingOpinions]

I think it totally depends on what the guy was doing before winning the MitB and of course the booking he recieves after he wins it and after he becomes the champ.

Edge was the first guy to cash it in and it was something special, so he got over. RVD was hot. Punk wasn't so hot, he hadn't done anything special in the WWE and the booking he recieved was weak at best. The second time he did a lot more because he was given creative freedom. Cena and Orton were already establish guys so it doesn't really matter. Del Rio was a mid carder and stayed a mid carder, with or without the MitB. Ziggler was the guy that was hot and everyone want an excuse for him to be WHC and that was MitB. Sandow, well, they didn't know what to do with him, since they were gonna unify the titles, so they had him drop the briefcase and then forgot about him.

All in all, the MitB is the opportunity that one day you will most probably be World Champion. It all depends on how you are booked and how strong you look. MitB itself doesn't make neither destroy careers.

 

[Meth Head]

In the case of Sandow, Swagger, Ziggler and The Miz, the briefcase was nothing more than a creative shortcut born out of WWE's own laziness in developing their characters further. The reason these guys never stayed at the top for long is not due to some "curse," but because of the simple fact that people won't bite into the under-cooked.

The briefcase should be given to Superstars who straddle that grey area between the mid-card and the main event. If you look back on Edge's career the reason his transition from MITB winner to WWE Champion felt as natural as it did was because his character had already outgrown the mid-card by the time he cashed in the briefcase on Cena. He was in that grey area. As such, his ascension felt natural, and it felt earned.

You receive no such feeling when a guy fresh from FCW with a barely-developed character is suddenly holding a World Title.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I wouldn't really call it a curse. It's more of an issue of bad booking for some of the winners than anything else. Edge went on to become highly successful after his cash-ins on John Cena and The Undertaker. RVD cashed in successfully on John Cena resulting in the push when he was ECW and WWE Champion at the same time. CM Punk got his first two World Heavyweight Championship reigns through Money In the Bank, he turned out alright. Kane got a much deserved lengthy World Heavyweight Championship reign which produced some of the best promos of his career. Established status or not, it benefited him. As much as I cannot stand the guy, it helped Miz achieve his only WWE Championship reign whether he deserved it or not. Bryan began his "YES" chants after cashing in and winning his first world title, look where he is now.

John Cena and Randy Orton did not need Money In the Bank at all. It's more of another bullet point on their lists of accomplishments than anything. Orton turned heel to start the storyline with Bryan against The Authority, so something great came out of his cash-in. Sandow, I have no clue where things went wrong with him. He looked to be on the path to stardom then he cashed in his chocolate looking version of the briefcase, lost, and has been jobbing ever since. Bad booking. Swagger's reign could have been awesome, bad booking. Del Rio I am not sure where he went wrong either. He had been given chance after chance then with Money In the Bank it was his big opportunity to finally make it as a permanent main eventer. I want to say it was bad booking in his case, but it's not as clear cut of a case as it was with Swagger or Sandow. Kennedy just had bad luck, plain and simple. He messed up the push of a lifetime where he would have cashed in after holding the briefcase for one year and being revealed as the culprit behind Vince's limo exploding. He was heavily rumored to be getting this push at the time.

So, no. Other than a few cases where there was bad booking involved or some cases or bad luck, everyone who has held a Money In the Bank briefcase before either benefited from the push or was already established enough that it would not matter how it went. It's a tradition that needs to stay. The match type is incredibly popular and it has created enough stars to justify keeping. I don't view it as a curse whatsoever. What does need to change is having less opportunistic cash-in's, and perhaps adding a midcard or tag team briefcase this year now that we have one world title, but that's a discussion for another topic.

 

[Kidpolean]

um....NO

the list is full of wrestlers that STILL have a job. All of them except Mr. Kennedy either still have a job, are a sure hall of famer, or currently a hall of famer. Mr. Kennedy went on to have a pretty good career with TNA. CM Punk and DB, two of the biggest stars of this era benefited from winning the MITB.

Personally, I don't like the whole MITB idea but it is definitely a good thing. The Miz would certainly agree considering the fact that he is one of, if not, the worst wrestler to main event a WM. Ziggler received the biggest pop of his career because of the MITB.

the only person that I would say didn't benefit from it is Sandow BUT it could be argued that the MITB lead to the best match of his career.

 

[JJ15776]

Interesting thought. Let's take a closer look at each case.

First, we have to take Cena, Sandow, Orton, Kane, and Kennedy off the list. Cena, Orton, and Kane were already established main eventers and had been world champions. Sandow and Kennedy(and Cena) didn't win the title despite holding the briefcase, Kennedy didn't even cash his in. No curses there.

CM Punk, Edge, and Bryan all went on to superstardom. Clearly no curse there, quite the opposite.

Jack Swagger and The Miz, and Rob Van Dam weren't main eventers before they won the title. They've, essentially, returned to the same level they were at before winning the briefcase and getting the title. RVD also screwed himself with the drug bust, making it difficult for the WWE to trust him, then he decided to become a part timer. Obviously, it's not a curse if they're exactly where they were beforehand. That leaves us with 2.

First, there's Alberto Del Rio. There's no doubt that, today, he isn't nearly what he was. But he was a consistent main eventer for more than a year after winning the briefcase and the title. I think the thing that has hurt him is losing Ricardo Rodriguez...he was a heat magnet for ADR, with both his introductions and his antics at ringside. Since he was at the top for so long after winning, that's clearly not MITB-related, so not a curse.

Then, there's Dolph Ziggler. Like ADR, Ziggler is not nearly what he was before he won the briefcase and cashed it in. And he dropped off pretty much immediately after cashing it in...losing that time with the concussion, turning face(instead of being the heel that fans cheer regardless) and breaking up with AJ(losing his heat magnet, just like ADR) all really hurt him. If you want to believe in things like curses, I would say it certainly applies here.

So that's 1 out of 13 who has been "cursed" by winning MITB. It would seem the answer to the subject is no.

EDIT: Even though the OP specifically mentions cashing it in and winning the title, I decided to include Sandow and Kennedy further. Sandow would fall into the "is what he was before he won the briefcase" category, no curse there. But Kennedy's career certainly took a nosedive after he won the briefcase. The injury that caused him to lose the briefcase, the drug suspension, a whole lot of blah, other injuries, and finally getting unceremoniously fired because Randy Orton is a punk.

So 2 out of 13 who have been "cursed," if you believe in that sort of thing, by MITB. One cursed by winning the briefcase, one by cashing it in and winning the title. Still, that's a very small percentage, and the answer would remain a solid no.

 

[LuckyLouie]

MITB used to mean something. When it was on WM it was something new and cool. After Edge won, people wanted to see it one more time.
But just like everything that is over exposed, it becomes dull. Think about it, what if every time they win the case they win the title. Boring, so they have to make them lose sometimes.
But they killed the idea completely when they made it into a PPV. Now it went from a idea that will raise you to be a superstar. As in Edge and RVD beating Cena. To a lame gimmick match that results in a loss for the winner.

 

[whoopin' ass]

I think the problem is that wwe was never really behind some guys with a good plan for them once they won. I think the decided they wanted to make someone champ within the next year so they booked them to win so they would have that build in storyline but never bothered to think of what to do afterwards. Some guys like Edge just got lucky where as Ziggler and Swagger didn't.

 

[Rampage Bentley]

I don't think it's a curse at all, it's a sink or swim moment for the guy who holds the briefcase.

Some have answered that challenge and swam. Guys like Edge and CM Punk had what it took to be in the main event scene, for them Money in the Bank was just the stepping stone they needed to reach that next level. They were guys who not only thrived with the briefcase, but knew how to incorporate winning that match into their characters.

On the other hand, you have the "sinkers." Guys like Jack Swagger and The Miz who were handed the keys to the kingdom and just couldn't handle it.

Money in the Bank is a great concept, but WWE Creative needs to be extremely careful in the decision as to who pulls that briefcase down.