Penta's Money in the Bank Win Opens a New Door in WWE's World Title Picture

Just when it felt like things might be getting stale in the WWE men's world title scene, Penta's Money in the Bank briefcase win provided a timely curveball.

On a night that started with Roman Reigns putting LA Knight down to keep things the same around that top title, Penta unexpectedly emerged as the briefcase winner.

Things are about to get interesting, with Penta clutching a briefcase.

Biggest winners and losers after Money In The Bank

At first glance, the luchador's inclusion in the men's ladder match felt like a reward from WWE after his recent epic match with Reigns in Mexico—not a sign that he would win. The company can be pretty formulaic, so his loss to The Tribal Chief felt like the end of his real contention hopes for a while.

Penta was electric in a match littered with memorable spots, including Je'Von Evans crashing through an ambulance roof, before he ascended the ladder to win:

Zooming out, it's hard to complain about the direction. Honestly, Evans and Trick Williams aren't ready for top titles. This was fun exposure for them, though. After his injury and Oba Femi, the same goes for Bron Breakker, though he had a stellar match.

Veterans CM Punk and Kevin Owens, frankly, don't need a briefcase to contend. This match served as storyline development for the two (while giving a youngster-filled match two seasoned veterans to help things out), which was sheer genius.

The projected end results matter, too. The younger guys in that match don't feel like real threats to Reigns. The veterans do, but the time might not be right.

Penta, though, has already proved himself as a serious threat to Reigns.

Another thing to consider: Who's to say Penta won't go after the Undisputed WWE Championship around Sami Zayn's waist? That's the belt that has been hot-shotted around the likes of Cody Rhodes, Punk and Drew McIntyre in recent years. Why not Penta next?

Don't just write off a Reigns rematch as a loss either. With Royce Keys' 946 faction hovering around all things Bloodline, maybe WWE is more comfortable giving Penta the win, even via interference, than it was giving LA Knight the same win. Not that a loss hurts. But one could argue that Penta is far more believable as a Reigns-defeater than Knight right now.

Maybe that's the other big wrinkle, really. The briefcase itself has had a bad reputation lately. It's been won and discarded so quickly that it almost gives the vibe that Triple H and everyone else with any creative pull hate it.

But here's Penta, who has already shown he's a main eventer capable of taking down either top dog. With the briefcase in hand, it's a smart move for him to stretch out his decision, keep things tense, and give audiences a long chance to get to know him better.

Beyond that, plans change and injuries and other circumstances happen in pro wrestling. Penta, as a break-glass-in-an-emergency guy with a briefcase, isn't a bad thing to have in the background. He can hop between weekly programs and keep the tension high around a main event scene that, at least on Zayn's side, has been really unpredictable.

This is a nice run for the men's main event scene as a whole, too. Zayn's title reign keeps rewarding the guys who deserve it . Reigns is full-time and putting on classics without interference. Penta is now a proven fan favorite and a plausible holder of either strap.

All things considered, it's pretty hard to complain. Really, Penta was the smartest choice and the one most likely to keep folks tuning in weekly to see what happens next.