Mustafa Ali’s WWE journey has been one of captivating highs and frustrating lows. He joined WWE under the 205 Live Cruiserweight Classic, and his performance earned him a full-time contract. He spent more than 7 years in WWE, feuding with top stars in the company.
Ali was released by WWE in September 2023 along with several wrestlers due to budget cuts and recently his appearance for other wrestling promotions has gained them more audience and profit.
Was Mustafa Ali’s removal by WWE a mistake?
After the 90 day non compete clause was completed from WWE, Mustafa Ali, started to make his presence to the indies, known as the independent wrestling promotions. Ali competed his first match after leaving WWE at the APC’s 20th Anniversary show on January 6th. Now according to reports, the promoters from Indie’s are really happy to see a significant increase in ticket sales, after Ali’s appearance.
The reports also confirmed that, Ali has been booked for several shows after his presence at the APC’s 20th Anniversary show. Wrestling fans were happy to hear this news, as they were against the WWE, when the promotion announced the release of several wrestlers back in September 2023.
After the announcement in September 2023, fans expressed dissatisfaction, commenting that WWE made a big mistake by releasing Mustafa Ali. They also mentioned that releasing Matt Riddle was the biggest mistake ever, and recently, Riddle shocked the world by appearing in NJPW. This story mirrors the situation with Dolph Ziggler, who was also released by WWE along with Ali. Now, Ziggler has surprised the world with his debut to NJPW as Nic Nemeth.
Why was Mustafa Ali released by WWE?
Mustafa Ali gained popularity among fans when he pinned WWE Champion Daniel Bryan in a tag team match on SmackDown in 2018. He also competed in the Elimination Chamber match for the WWE Championship in 2019 but was eliminated by Randy Orton.
Ali moved to the Raw brand in 2020, where he revealed himself as the leader of the villainous stable Retribution. He feuded with various wrestlers, including Ricochet, Kofi Kingston, and Drew McIntyre. He was released from WWE in September 2023 after expressing his frustrations with the creative direction of the company.
According to reports, he was released by WWE due to a lack of a storyline for him, and he was paid more money despite competing in very few matches. Before his release from WWE, Ali faced Gunther for the Intercontinental Title at WWE Night of Champions. Ali tried his best to win the match, but he wasn’t able to secure the title from the Ring General.
Ali is set to make his NJPW debut at Windy City Riot on April 12, 2024 and will face Hiromu Takahashi in a singles match. Fans have raised their support for him and they wish him to win title in NJPW, that he was unable to achieve during his time in WWE.
