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June 18 (UPI) -- Ronda Rousey's championship match against Nia Jax Sunday at Money in the Bank was cut short by Alexa Bliss in surprising fashion. The first main event of the night, Rousey, in her second WWE match after facing off against authority figures Stephanie McMahon and Triple H at WrestleMania in April, was again impressive despite being initially thrown around like a rag doll by the bigger and more powerful Jax.
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Jax was defending her Raw Women's Championship against Rousey after Bliss had already defeated a collection of Raw and Smackdown Superstars including Charlotte Flair, Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch, Lana, Naomi, Ember Moon and Natalya earlier in the night to claim the Money in the Bank briefcase.
Rousey, after being punished by Jax, was able to weather the storm and began to bring the fight to The Irresistible Force by utilizing judo throws and a number of punches.
As The Baddest Woman in the planet set up Jax to be put into her signature submission hold, the Armbar, Bliss arrived with her Money in the Bank briefcase and attacked both Rousey and Jax with it, ending their bout in a disqualification.
The briefcase, which can be used to set up a championship match at anytime, was then cashed in by Bliss immediately after she made sure Rousey was down for good. A depleted Jax was unable to fend off Bliss following her battle with Rousey and was quickly defeated following a Twisted Bliss making Bliss the new Raw Women's Champion.
In the men's Money in the Bank Ladder Match, Raw and Smackdown Superstars including Finn Balor, The Miz, Samoa Joe, Rusev, Bobby Roode, Kevin Owens and Kofi Kingston of The New Day, tried their best to keep fellow opponent Braun Strowman down in their quest to earn a championship opportunity.
The match started with everyone ganging up on The Monster Among Men, sending the towering giant to the entrance ramp where he was buried underneath a pile of ladders. The assault wasn't enough, however, as Strowman eventually recovered and proceeded to dominate the match.
Strowman, after another assault by Owens, Joe and Rusev, tossed Owens off of a 20-foot ladder onto a table, effectively removing Owens from the match permanently. Strowman then broke through a ladder being held by Roode and Balor and proceeded to go after The Miz who attempted to sneakily obtain the Money in the Bank briefcase when no one was looking.
The final moments of the match included Strowman climbing the ladder opposite Balor while Kingston latched onto Strowman's back in an attempt to grab the hanging prize himself. Strowman disposed of both men and then took the briefcase, making him the winner.
Other key moments from the match included Balor delivering a Coup de Grace from the top of a ladder onto Roode and Rusev performing a double Accolade on Kingston and Roode.
Money in the Bank also included The Bludgeon Brother successfully defending their Smackdown Tag Team Championships against Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson during the kickoff; Daniel Bryan defeating Big Cass; Bobby Lashley defeating Sami Zayn; Seth Rollins successfully defending his Intercontinental Championship against Elias; Roman Reigns defeating Jinder Mahal; Carmella successfully defending her Smackdown Women's Championship against Asuka with help from her former side piece James Ellsworth; and AJ Styles successfully defending his WWE Championship against Shinsuke Nakamura in a Last Man Standing Match.
The Last Man Standing Matching featured Styles able to obtain victory following a Phenomenal Forearm that sent Nakamura crashing through a table. The highly-competitive bout was a brutal contest that featured multiple attacks below the belt, broken tables and Nakamura utilizing his finishing maneuver, the Kinshasa.
