Rusev vs. Titus O'Neil: Winner and Reaction from WWE Money in the Bank 2016

Rusev's second run as the WWE United States champion continued in impressive fashion Sunday at Money in the Bank, as he defeated Titus O'Neil with the title on the line.

WWE provided footage of Rusev's finishing move, The Accolade: 

There was plenty of action, and Rusev's spin kick was one of the highlights, via WWE Universe: 

The Bulgarian Brute regained the U.S. belt at Extreme Rules with a victory over Kalisto, and after he beat the masked Superstar in a rematch, a new challenger emerged in the form of O'Neil.

In his first angle of significance since returning from a suspension that stemmed from his grabbing Vince McMahon following Daniel Bryan's retirement ceremony, O'Neil aimed to take the United States Championship away from a man he did not believe respected the country.

The former tag team champion got the upper hand on Rusev on a couple of occasions prior to Money in the Bank, but The Super Athlete was not concerned about losing the title:

Conversely, O'Neil made it clear that he would give Rusev everything he could handle at the pay-per-view:

Rusev recently started to develop into a dominant force after being placed on the backburner for the better part of a year.

Losing the United States Championship to John Cena at WrestleMania 31 took away much of his luster, and the manner in which he was booked following that defeat relegated him to low-card status for the next several months.

Following the dissolution of The League of Nations, Rusev had an opportunity to take back some of the legitimacy he lost, and he did so by reuniting with Lana on a full-time basis and reclaiming the title that led him to prominence in the first place.

En route to Money in the Bank, Rusev was faced with a familiar adversary in Jack Swagger, and while The Bulgarian Bulldozer was able to beat him, Swagger seemingly lent some inspiration and patriotism to O'Neil.

The crowd was firmly behind O'Neil at Money in the Bank thanks to his vow to fight for America, and it made for a fun atmosphere against the evil, foreign heel.

As was so often the case during Rusev's initial reign as the United States champion, however, he overcame a tough challenge and turned O'Neil away in a hotly contested title match.

While winning the United States Championship could have been huge for O'Neil and would have been his first singles title, Rusev may need the belt more.

A vocal opponent of the U.S. holding a prize that represents the country is a surefire way to garner heat and build a hated heel, and by virtue of Rusev's triumph, that process continued Sunday.

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