Roman Reigns Beats LA Knight to Retain WWE World Title at Money in the Bank as Brawl Ensues

Roman Reigns defeated LA Knight at WWE Money in the Bank on Saturday to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.

Both men had a host of near-falls in this closely contested match, which featured a confident challenger in Knight.

Reigns' Superman Punch nearly drew a three-count. Knight fought back with a Superplex-Burning Hammer combo, but that wasn't good enough either.

Reigns fought back and hit The Megastar with a uranage, but it wasn't enough to put Knight away.

The two men traded blows outside the ring and narrowly avoided a double count-out, both rushing back into the ring just in time.

Reigns then hit Knight with another Superman Punch to set him up for the spear, but the challenger countered with a BFT. Knight went for the pin, but The Tribal Chief kicked out just in time again.

The Megastar attempted a spear, but Reigns countered with his own. Another pin attempt led to another near-fall, but it wasn't enough.

Reigns then hit Knight with some heavy right hands. He dedicated each punch to a member of the Bloodline as the sequence went on, with Solo Sikoa being the last one.

But Knight hit Reigns with another spear. Another pin attempt led to another near-fall.

Knight sent Reigns through the ringside barricade after Reigns' spear attempt. He then powerbombed Reigns through the announce table, threw him into the ring and connected with a top-rope elbow drop. Somehow, that still wasn't enough to secure the pinfall.

The closing sequence began when Reigns crotched Knight on the top rope. The OTC then hit two Superman punches and a spear on his opponent, and that got the job done.

After the match, The 946 appeared in the crowd and gestured at Reigns, who didn't seem all that alarmed. Fans found out why as Solo Sikoa and The Usos soon appeared behind them.

A massive brawl ensued, and the fight went from the crowd to the concourse to outside the arena. Jaida Parker appeared in a getaway car to take The 946 away.

There is a great deal of history between Reigns and Knight dating back multiple years, and Money in the Bank marked the latest chapter in their long-running rivalry.

Despite his past issues with The Bloodline, Knight found common ground with The Usos leading up to WrestleMania 42 earlier this year, and he even teamed with them in a winning effort against Logan Paul, Austin Theory and IShowSpeed.

However, after Reigns beat CM Punk for the world heavyweight title in the main event of WrestleMania, The Usos aligned with their cousin once again and reformed The Bloodline, much to the chagrin of Knight.

After having seen The Bloodline run roughshod over WWE in the past and cost him the chance to become world champ multiple times in 2023 and 2024, Knight had no interest in seeing The Bloodline back in power.

In the weeks and months that followed, Knight expressed his concerns about The Bloodline to Raw general manager Adam Pearce on multiple occasions, and attempted to convince The Usos to leave the group in the past.

When his efforts fell flat, The Megastar found some unexpected allies in Sikoa and Royce Keys, both of whom were at odds with The Bloodline as well.

Knight, Sikoa and Keys teamed up to beat The Usos and Jacob Fatu at SummerSlam, allowing The Megastar to build more momentum toward a world title opportunity.

While Knight accused Reigns of ducking him due to the fact that he agreed to face the winner of a tournament made up entirely of luchadores in a world title match in Mexico City, his chance finally came.

After Reigns beat Penta on Raw in Mexico City last month, Knight attacked Reigns, and his World Heavyweight Championship bout against The Tribal Chief was made official for Money in the Bank shortly thereafter.

Although Knight had plenty of motivation and crowd support behind him, The OTC prevailed and once again denied The Megastar what would have been his first world title win in WWE.