In 2005, WWE introduced the concept of Money in the Bank, and in 2017 the company introduced a women’s version of the very same concept. While its history is shorter, the women’s briefcase actually has a stronger track record for success than the men’s, as every single cash-in has yielded a new champion. By contrast, men’s cash-ins only have a seventy-six percent success rate to date.
To be fair, the first unsuccessful men’s cash-in didn’t occur until 2012, meaning the men’s briefcase was just about equally established as the women’s the first time it didn’t lead to a title change.
Despite the facts and figures at hand, history is quietly being made right now with one of the best Money in the Bank reigns of all time. Tiffany Stratton has absolutely thrived in her role holding the briefcase, waiting for her ascension to world championship glory.
Tiffany Stratton’s Coronation Feels Inevitable
Not all Money in the Bank briefcase holders are created equally. We’ve seen Mr. Money in Banks like John Cena (as the first person not to capture gold when he cashed in) and Drew McIntyre (as the most recent man to suffer the same fate)—established main eventers who didn’t need and thus didn’t feel so electric with the briefcase, and who wound up weathering big setbacks.
In contrast, there were winners like Damien Sandow or Nikki ASH—talented performers who nonetheless didn’t feel like they made a lot of sense winning the top prize in the company, such that it was disappointing but not exactly shocking when Sandow’s cash-in failed, and similarly not exactly shocking that while Nikki took the title, her ensuing reign was brief and forgettable.
Tiffany Stratton follows in a tradition of Ms. Money in the Banks like Carmella and Liv Morgan, not to mention Mr. Money in the Banks like Edge and Big E whose talents felt worthy of winning the big one, who are believably positioned to do just that in terms of their booking.
Even more so than Carmella and Morgan when they won their ladder matches, Stratton has a certain air of inevitability around her. She’s truly the total package in combining athleticism, raw power, and technical ability with charisma and the look of a star. She’s been well protected too, such that as fans watch her carry around the briefcase, there’s a real sense of watching history—that it’s less a question of whether than when she’ll have convert that luggage to a championship belt around her waist.
Tiffany Stratton Has A Strong Storyline Going With Nia Jax
Money in the Bank runs can go all sorts of different ways. The history of the women’s briefcase has been littered with very quick cash-ins. In particular, Bayley, Alexa Bliss, and Liv Morgan each cashed in the same night they won the ladder match. Nikki ASH waited less than a week, and Iyo Sky was a relatively patient Ms. Money in the Bank for waiting thirty-five days.
Only Carmella had a Money in the Bank run that could, by any measure, be considered long as two hundred eight-seven days passed before she cashed in on Charlotte Flair.
Tiffany Stratton is on course for a long briefcase run herself, as she’s already held onto it for over a hundred-fifty days. More so than idly waiting in the wings or randomly getting thwarted when she tries to cash-in at sporadic intervals, Strattons’ run has been largely defined by her angle with Nia Jax.
The duo are allies who superficially seem content to reign in their respective roles, with Tiffy even teasing cashing in on Liv Morgan instead so they could both, simultaneously be world champions. The possibility of their two-women power trip looms, though it feels more likely we’ll eventually see a betrayal. The angle has been patiently built enough that it’s conceivable it will run all the way to WrestleMania, perhaps with Stratton calling her shot in advance to finally take her title opportunity.
Tiffany Stratton’s Cash-In Teases Have Been Creative
Part of the fun of Tiffany Stratton’s Money in the Bank run has been the creativity of the scenarios in which she looks poised to cash-in. Yes, there have been some standard issue occurrences of her teasing she might cash-in when a champion is down. There was much more intrigue, though, wrapped up in Crown Jewel this year, with Nia Jax and Liv Morgan locked into a champion vs. champion match and tons of speculation ran rampant online about whether Stratton would or even could cash-in on both women simultaneously mid-match.
Another particularly fun cash-in tease materialized at Survivor Series as, mid-War Games, Stratton extracted her briefcase from a trash can. The moment was genuinely surprising and electric, as no one meaningfully saw it coming in, and immediate questions arose about what a cash-in in such a crowded pair of rings would look like. Would someone interrupt it? Would War Games resume after a cash-in, and, if so, would Stratton still have the faith of her teammates after stealing the title from one of them?
The cash-in didn’t actually go down, but the fun moment and big crowd response further indicated that the actual cash-in is going to be awesome.
Tiffany Stratton Herself Has Excelled At Every Turn
Despite steadily playing a heel throughout her main roster run, Tiffany Stratton has grown hugely popular for her propensity for delivering highlight reel high spots, her sex appeal, and her overall talent. Case in point, she’s lived up to just about every opportunity to date with no signs of slowing down.
Long time wrestling fans have seen their share of flashes in the pan—talents who get pushes and fizzle whether it’s due to their own shortcomings or fickle management. With everything Stratton brings to the table and Triple H representing a steadier hand at the creative helm of the company, there’s a real sense that patience surrounding her Tiffy’s Money in the Bank run will pay off in an incredible future. We all have the privilege of knowing we’re probably watching a Hall of Fame career get built before our very eyes.
