It’s been a few days since Money In The Bank ended, and fans, myself included, are every bit as confused about one of the booking decisions. With the crowd behind her and an obvious storyline just sitting there waiting to be told, most of us assumed Triple H and the writers were about to pull the trigger on promising twenty-four-year-old Roxanne Perez. Instead, the Money In The Bank victory was given to Tiffany Stratton, who already won a few years ago, leaving fans frustrated and wondering what that means for Perez’s future.
Let’s back up here and talk about Roxanne Perez. Dubbed the Prodigy for her technical precision and in-ring abilities at a young age, she finished second at the 2025 Royal Rumble while still a prospect in NXT and was quickly elevated to the main roster. She was then added to the popular Judgment Day faction and started getting a lot of screentime, as WWE teased reasons to doubt her loyalty, especially to Liv Morgan. For several months, it was assumed she would quickly develop into one of the main characters on Monday Night Raw, or at least a key side character, but in recent months, she’s largely been elevated to background work.
Fans have been frustrated by her booking for several months, but when she won her Money In The Bank qualifier, the path forward seemed really clear. Morgan is currently the WWE Women’s World Champion and her and Perez’s Judgment Day stablemate Raquel Rodriguez is the Intercontinental Champion. Whoever wins the Money In The Bank briefcase is allowed to cash in on any champion at any time. A victory would have set the stage for weeks or even months of programming where we followed Perez deciding whether or not to cash in on her friends.
The storyline was right there. The chance to bet big on Perez, one of the most talented young performers in the entire company, was right there. The chance to add a fresh injection of life and intrigue into Judgment Day, WWE’s second most popular faction behind The Bloodline, was right there. And yet, when it came time to make the obvious booking decision and bet on the future, WWE instead decided to go with Tiffany Stratton. Again.
Stratton won Money In The Bank two years ago. She successfully cashed in on Nia Jax and had a nice little run with the Women’s World Championship and was pretty over with the crowd. Unfortunately, an injury and some mediocre booking have reduced a lot of her momentum to the point where she was left off the WrestleMania card earlier this year. The company clearly wants to inject a hot storyline and some buzz back into her, as they see main event upside, but to many fans, it felt like that injection this weekend stepped on what should have been Roxanne’s moment.
The most important thing in wrestling is always the storyline. The hottest moments in wrestling the last few years have all been directly related to long-term booking. Cody Rhodes finishing his story. The saga of The Bloodline. Liv Morgan and Rhea Ripley’s feud over Judgment Day. Naomi going heel and turning on her friends. CM Punk and Drew McIntyre’s feud. Those were all based in plots that were told over the course of months.
Roxanne Perez with the Money In The Bank briefcase seemed like it had the potential to be one of those moments and to simultaneously elevate the Prodigy into one of the company’s next big stars. I’m really disappointed and confused about why they didn’t follow through.
