Powell's 2012 WWE Money in the Bank Preview and Predictions: Who will leave with the MITB briefcases? Will C.M. Punk extend his title reign despite A.J.'s role as special referee?

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Who is running this show? Seriously, we've had guest Raw and Smackdown general managers ever since John Laurinaitis was fired, but there's no word yet as to who is calling the shots at the pay-per-view. I'm not just trying to nitpick. Fans are still holding out hope that Rey Mysterio or The Miz or another former WWE Champion will be added to the Raw Money in the Bank match, but who would have the storyline power to make such an addition?

C.M. Punk vs. Daniel Bryan for the WWE Championship with A.J. as special referee. Every month I pick against C.M. Punk and every month he retains the championship. Do I keep the streak alive or do I jinx his reign by going with Bryan? This may not seem like the hottest show on paper, but the nice thing about it is that I don't feel like I know how things are going to play out in this match or either MITB match, and I'm genuinely curious to see how things play out.

I see a few possible scenarios. One, Punk retains the title and goes on to face Cena at SummerSlam or Survivor Series. Two, Bryan gets help from A.J. and wins the title and then loses it to Cena on Raw 1000 or at SummerSlam. Three, Punk retains and then faces Big Show for the WWE Championship at SummerSlam. Chris Jericho is heading out on tour with Fozzy after SummerSlam, and as much as I enjoyed Kane's part in the Triple Threat last month I don't think there's any juice in him winning the MITB briefcase.

I sensed some foreshadowing when Punk told Cena that he would be the leader of their tag team on Raw a couple weeks ago. I sensed it again when Eve pointed out that Punk is overshadowed by several people, including Cena, even though he's WWE Champion. I'm just not sure whether the foreshadowing is to set up a match between Punk and Cena at SummerSlam or something down the road. Here comes the jinx. I don't know how they get there with A.J., but I'm anxious to find out.

Punk retains.

John Cena vs. Big Show vs. Chris Jericho vs. Kane in a Money in the Bank match: In that order! I'm not just having a "Best in Show" flashback. I actually do see the order they are listed above as the order of most likely to least likely. Jericho winning and cashing in and being paired with A.J. would be a hell of a surprise. Dot Net reader Steve Orth noted that they could even use that to pay off the Jericho reintroduction videos that featured a young girl. I'm totally willing to forget the fact that Jericho is 17 years older than A.J., whereas the boy and the girl in the video appeared to be roughly the same age. Of course, whenever in doubt, go with the obvious pick.

John Cena wins.

Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio for the World Heavyweight Championship: This match feels like an afterthought, yet I am curious to see what type of match they can pull off. I don't see any need for a title change here unless they're going to play hot potato with the title tonight by having the MITB winner cash in, and that would seem to require one of the babyfaces going over in this scenario. It wouldn't stun me to see a heel MITB winner cash in or at least tease doing so tonight, so I'm going with the champ.

Sheamus retains the World Hvt. Championship.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Sin Cara vs. Tyson Kidd vs. Damien Sandow vs. Tensai vs. Santino Marella vs. Christian in a Money in the Bank match: This appears to be a two-man race between Ziggler and Rhodes. I'm banking on a heel to win even if WWE goes with a surprise victor. I'd prefer to see Ziggler win even though he just worked with Sheamus. Cody needs the briefcase more for the instant credibility boost. I haven't ruled out Sandow or Tensai winning either, but I believe it comes down to Dolph or Cody, so I'm going with the guy I see as the right call to break the tie.

Dolph Ziggler wins.

WWE Tag Champions R-Truth and Kofi Kingston vs. Hunico and Camacho: This is the pre-show match. I'm not sure how this is supposed to entice anyone to check out the free preview let alone order the pay-per-view. Sure, the action should be good when Kingston and Hunico are in the ring together, but it's hard enough to care about tag title matches these days given the treatment the division receives let alone non-title affairs. My guess is that The Primetime Players get involved after Truth and Kingston win, perhaps leading to an actual tag title match on the pay-per-view, which would actually interest me.

Kingston and R-Truth retain.