Penta walking out of Money in the Bank with the briefcase surprised a lot of fans, and it turns out it may have surprised some people inside WWE too. According to a new backstage update, he wasn’t even expected to be in that position just a month before the show.

During a recent Q&A, JoeyVotes and TC of WrestleVotes were asked about Penta’s Money in the Bank victory. Joey explained that everything changed after Penta’s performance against Roman Reigns on the Mexico City edition of RAW, with his stock reportedly skyrocketing backstage.

“A lot of plans changed post-Mexico City. He was the creative favorite. Those within thought Penta was going to win that match. Three weeks later, he ended up winning it. So he did a lot of good for himself at Mexico City. Don’t know if that’s gonna translate into him winning the title eventually, but he wasn’t supposed to be in this spot a month ago.”

TC quickly backed that up, making it clear Penta’s push came together much faster than many people realized: “He definitely wasn’t.”

So, Penta’s showing against Roman Reigns in Mexico City appears to have completely changed how he was viewed internally. While it doesn’t necessarily mean WWE already has plans to make him a world champion, it does sound like one standout performance was enough to vault him into one of the company’s biggest spots.

It’s another reminder of how quickly things can change in WWE. One month Penta reportedly wasn’t even penciled in as the Money in the Bank winner, and the next he was standing on top of the ladder holding the briefcase with a guaranteed world title opportunity in his pocket.

Do you think WWE made the right call by pivoting to Penta, or should someone else have won this year’s Money in the Bank? Let us know in the comments.