During Sunday night's WWE "Money In The Bank" 2017 pay-per-view, "The Ravishing Russian" Lana made her official Singles Match debut and it was in a huge matchup. Lana took on the "SmackDown" Women's Champion Naomi with the title on the line. Could she capture the title in her first match since coming to the blue brand? Here are the latest match highlights and results for Lana vs. Naomi from the "Money in the Bank" PPV.
Lana surprises in debut
When it was realized that Lana would be making a return as a women's wrestler, many fans were excited about the possibility.
When it was seen via her promo vignettes on "SmackDown" that she'd be using some sort of burlesque dancer gimmick, some fans were not as enthusiastic. However, the gimmick is merely her entrance to the ring, as Lana showed her mean streak in the ring.
The #RavishingRussian @LanaWWE is surely proving her "doubters" wrong as she takes it to @NaomiWWE in her singles debut! #WomensTitle #MITB pic.twitter.com/GabwTOeBol
— WWE (@WWE) June 19, 2017
Many fans were expecting the "SmackDown" women's champion, Naomi, to make quick work of the less-experienced Lana. However, "The Ravishing Russian" certainly impressed in her first singles match in the pay-per-view. Lana dominated quite a bit, exploiting an injury to Naomi's leg to take her down several times.
A spot late in the match saw Lana knock Naomi to the mat and then run against the ropes. The women's champion was quick to get back up and hit the Rear View to knock Lana to the mat for a near fall. Lana would roll to the outside of the ring to recover, but the champ tried to grab her by the hair. That allowed Lana to deliver a high boot kick to Naomi's head so that she could get back in the ring with her.
Who was the winner?
Moments later in the match, Lana still had an advantage after hitting the sit-out powerbomb move she used to put down Naomi on "SmackDown Live" last Tuesday. However, Carmella's theme music hit and the first-ever women's "Money in the Bank" ladder match winner arrived at ringside with her lackey James Ellsworth.
Lana watched to see if Carmella would hand over her briefcase to cash it in for a title shot right then and there. "The Princess of Staten Island" teased doing so, but then backed off and told the women to "carry on" with their match. An angry Lana continued and tried for a second powerbomb.
SUBMISSION VICTORY for @NaomiWWE as she remains your #SDLive #WomensChampion! #MITB pic.twitter.com/B1ZGDizEuh
— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) June 19, 2017
However, Naomi managed to flip over her this time and lock in a submission. It was similar to what she used to make Alexa Bliss tap out at "WrestleMania 33" to win the title.
With that, Lana was forced to tap out to the women's champ in her debut match. Naomi hoisted her title belt as Carmella and James Ellsworth smirked and walked back up the ramp, saving the briefcase for another time.