Damian Priest's failed Money in the Bank cash-in will lead to the end of Judgment Day

Heading into WrestleMania 40 there’s a lot of talk about the WWE main event picture. Cody Rhodes is poised to challenge Roman Reigns. Drew McIntyre gets another crack at Seth Rollins. But one name that isn’t mentioned is Damian Priest. “Senor Money In The Bank” is in a race against the clock to cash in that briefcase. His failure will be the catalyst that finally kicks off the implosion of Judgment Day.

Damian Priest is one of those names that should come to mind when thinking about WWE NXT “graduates” who have been well booked on the main roster. He’s remained in prominent positions, such as his back-and-forth situation with Bad Bunny. Moments that put him squarely in the spotlight. He’s been protected for much of his run, rarely losing single matches along the way. And as a part of Judgment Day, he’s been a focal point of a faction that carried much of the show throughout 2023.

But times have changed. Names such as GUNTHER and McIntyre have passed Priest when it comes to individuals up for title runs. Even someone like Sami Zayn has more momentum behind him. Priest cashing in on either of the current champions or any man coming out of WrestleMania 40 wouldn’t be the moment to do a title switch. Seeing him take the belt would be met with fan backlash, especially as many want to see Rhodes and McIntyre get lengthy reigns. That leaves Priest the odd one out while creating an opening for this group to split up.

Judgment Day will probably lose the tag team titles at Mania. Many expect R-Truth and The Miz to be the ones to end their reign, which makes sense in the storyline. Once they drop the belts the pressure of that defeat will cause Priest to hastily cash-in and lose there. That would be the end of the “leverage” held by that faction. And as with all great factions in professional wrestling, the group will implode, kicking Priest out and setting up their feud for the next few months.

It is time to bring Judgment Day to an end. Rhea Ripley has outgrown the group. She and Dominick Mysterio can go about their own ways. Perhaps even linking Mysterio to a future angle with Andrade which was hinted at on Monday Night Raw. Finn Balor and JD McDonaugh would be an interesting tag team in a division that is slowly being fleshed out for competition when those Undisputed Tag Titles get back into a flow. Priest could go on a run as a babyface after getting shunned from the group. He’d be a terrific addition to the upper-mid card until there’s a push for him to hit that main event status.

The Judgment Day over-delivered as a group. The faction helped elevate Ripley to superstar status and gave fans some quality television since its inception. However, it is time for this group to come to an end. The beginning of that final stretch includes a failed MITB cash-in by Damian Priest.