Carmella Is the Only Option to Win 2nd Women's WWE MITB Ladder Match

Controversy cost Carmella the Money in the Bank briefcase James Ellsworth secured for her on Sunday.

Tuesday night, she will have the opportunity to regain the guaranteed championship opportunity that lies inside that briefcase, but to do so, she will have to endure the punishment of the agonizing ladder match one more time without her manager at ringside to assist her.

The televised rematch not only presents a rare opportunity for the company to make history for a second time with the same collection of Superstars, but it also provides Carmella the chance to legitimize herself without the dark cloud of Ellsworth's interference hanging over the contest.

Given the manner in which the controversy and rectification have gone down, having Carmella scale the ladder and retrieve the briefcase that was stripped away from her is the only adequate booking decision facing WWE Creative.

Preserving Her Heel Heat

There was no heel on the SmackDown Live roster hotter on Tuesday's episode than Carmella. Seething at the idea of fans criticizing her for using underhanded methods in a match without rules, she cut the promo of her career on an unsuspecting audience. The result? Intense heel heat.

By the time she revealed the chip on her shoulder that still exists from being the last Superstar drafted in July 2016, she had proved to the masses she did not need Ellsworth to generate jeers. She was more than capable of doing that for herself.

Winning the Money in the Bank briefcase without Ellsworth at ringside, giving Carmella everything to brag about in the wake of the match, would only strengthen her position as the lead heel in the women's division and further make a greater, more legitimate star out of her.

A heel who touts their greatness then backs it up by winning clean is the most effective. They are great, they know it and they support their claims. Carmella can be that heel, especially if she can seize an opening Tuesday night and win in a way that is fair but still creates just enough doubt she won it straight up.

Storytelling

Unless Charlotte Flair is to turn again or Lana is booked to defeat Naomi for the SmackDown Women's Championship, Carmella is the only option who makes storytelling sense.

Money in the Bank is an effective tool for an unproven heel to win their first major championship. Only when the stars are aligned and there is a strong villain atop the division does a babyface sneakily cashing in Money in the Bank work.

In other instances, the briefcase necessitates a heel turn by a popular babyface.

Either way, it is a plot device that greatly favors baddies.

Natalya, as great an in-ring talent as she is, is not consistently over enough to warrant the win. Ditto Tamina, though she was the centerpiece of the first Money in the Bank match, taking big bumps and playing tackling dummy for the other women involved.

That leaves Carmella, who has demonstrated an ability to get over with audiences and perform admirably in high-profile situations. Case in point: Her matches with Nikki Bella, which were infinitely better than they had any right to be.

As the arrogant heel who interrupts championship bouts involving Naomi, forcing the titleholder to look over her shoulder for a potential cash-in, Carmella would undoubtedly thrive.

Charlotte could win, turn heel and strengthen that portion of the roster, but it'd still feel very much like "been there; done that." She is refreshing as a babyface and numero uno friend of Becky Lynch.

Why sacrifice that to go back to the same booking fans of Raw witnessed for over a year?

The Land of Opportunity

SmackDown Live has been touted The Land of Opportunity by everyone involved, including commissioner Shane McMahon. Tamina, Natalya, Becky Lynch and Charlotte have all had their opportunities to be involved in championship feuds and battle for the top prize in women's wrestling.

That is an honor that has not been bestowed upon Carmella.

Despite her work with Bella and the continued entertainment value of her on-screen pairing with Ellsworth, she has remained outside of championship contention. Even two recent pinfall victories over Naomi have not produced the singles bout for the title many expected.

Instead, she has had to compete in a Money in the Bank ladder match and will have to do so for a second time, hoping to earn a guaranteed opportunity for the first time in her main-roster career.

Add to all of that the fact Carmella vs. Naomi is a fresh program that has yet to be explored on the blue brand and the opportunity to present two fresh faces battling for championship glory is too good to pass up.

Making Carmella the best, and only, choice to win the second women's Money in the Bank ladder match.