Ken Anderson Reveals Original Plan For His WWE Money In The Bank Cash-In

Ken Anderson, also known as Mr. Kennedy in WWE, was considered one of the rising stars in Vince McMahon’s company until his release in 2009. The charismatic talker was known for performing his own ring announcement and battling against the likes of The Undertaker and Batista. Ken Anderson also became the WWE’s World Heavyweight Champion but inconvenient timing and a false diagnosis caused plans to shift.

The former Ken Kennedy recently appeared on “INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet.” He spoke with Anderson about taking home the Money In The Bank briefcase at WrestleMania 23 in 2007. Anderson was supposed to cash in his briefcase at the subsequent WrestleMania.

I only had it a month and a half, two months maybe, and they came to me. I was riding with Matt Hardy. We had left the building early, which was unlike us. We usually stayed until the very end. For whatever reason, we left early, and I got a call from Michael Hayes. He says, ‘Where are you guys? I need you to come back. Vince needs to talk to you in his office.’

Anderson and Hardy returned to the building and virtually no one was still there when he made his way to McMahon’s office. The champion at the time, Undertaker, tore his bicep and was going to be out for a while. They had originally planned for Undertaker to hold the WWE Title for an extended period of time, but they would now need to change strategy.

He laid out the scenario basically and he’s like, ‘You’re going to cash in your briefcase, we’re going to have a new champion.’ And I remember him telling me that they were high on Batista at the time; that was their guy… They felt like Batista needed to chase for a while, and they said, ‘When we feel the time is right, we’re going to put it on Batista, but we don’t know how long that could be. I could be like a month, or five months, or six months, or whatever.’ I remember I just said, ‘Look, I appreciate you guys saying that, but this is business and I’ll do what’s necessary.’

Anderson felt his tricep pop while taking a clothesline the following night while working a home show, and Fit Finlay advised him outside the ring that the injury didn’t look good. Anderson’s arm began to bruise very away, which was unusual for him. He received a call from Stephanie informing him that they would need to alter their plans once more since he tore his triceps off the bone.

‘We’re going to take you to Penn State. Edge is going to challenge you for the briefcase, and then he’s going to go on and do what you’re supposed to do tomorrow night.’ ‘Okay.’ And I remember thinking at the time, ‘I’ve got a year to cash this thing in. Isn’t there some other way you can get it off him?’ But I didn’t say it. I sort of regret not saying it now.

Edge called Anderson a “chicken” that evening on “WWE Raw,” and that was enough for him to put his briefcase on the line.

I gave up the briefcase. The next day, I flew to Dr. Andrews’ table, and he’s feeling my triceps, and he’s like, ‘That’s not a tear.’

Before being released in May 2009, Anderson was never given the chance to control a major WWE title. After joining IMPACT Wrestling in 2010, he did go on to win two World Championships. Anderson has only competed in the ring three times since 2019, but he has shown a desire to do so soon. Check out the video below.

What’s your take on this story? Sound off in the comments!