Predicting WWE Money in the Bank 2017 Ladder Match Entrants

WWE.com

Rusev

Earlier in May, Rusev looked set to return to SmackDown Live. That didn’t become the case on the go-home show before Backlash, as well as an absence at Sunday’s PPV. It leaves his status in doubt, despite announcing an intention of getting a championship match at Money in the Bank.

If Rusev doesn’t get what he desires, then the next best thing will be putting him in the Ladder Match for a guaranteed WWE Championship bout. He’d be one of the favorites to win, going along with this “Land of Opportunity” identity SmackDown Live has established. It wouldn’t be unforeseen, as the Bulgarian Brute once looked like a future main event heel, until he lost to John Cena at WrestleMania 31.

An intriguing dynamic could be Rusev winning Money in the Bank and going for his match when Mahal is champion. These two worked as a tag team on Raw for a few months, ending with a thud. They never got off the ground, and were mostly fodder for Enzo Amore and Big Cass. So would anyone initially care to see these old pals rival each other? Maybe not, but SmackDown has made fans care about the seemingly-insignifcant before (look what happened with Mahal), so why can’t it happen again?