Mustafa Ali has been released from WWE following a seven-year stint with the company.
WWE has cut several main roster and NXT talents today including the likes of Dolph Ziggler and Elias.
Haus of Wrestling is reporting that there were creative plans in place for Ali to appear on Monday Night RAW this week.
Ali had hinted at his RAW appearance on last week’s episode of WWE NXT when he spoke about Dragon Lee getting a shot at Dominik Mysterio’s NXT North American Championship.
Ali would have reportedly gotten involved in the Mysterio-Lee match on RAW, which would have caused “ramifications” for his planned match at NXT No Mercy 2023.
Ali was the announced #1 contender for the North American Championship.
According to a WWE source, Ali was never “ever going to get a chance to shine” in the company, although the reason for that is unknown.
Ali was always “upbeat” backstage, particularly during his NXT run, even though some believed he was unhappy with his role. One person called him “the ultimate pro.”
The talents released by WWE today carry 90-day non-compete clauses which means none shall be eligible to work anywhere else until after December 20.
Some members of the WWE roster are reportedly frustrated due to the cuts happening immediately after WWE’s new television deal with the USA Network.
A top Superstar stated that most of the released wrestlers never had a chance because they weren’t getting booked and it was a “circle that couldn’t be escaped.”
Other talents were under the impression that the days of mass releases were over and deals would be allowed to expire instead, as has been the case of late.
Mass cuts were not something previously discussed under Triple H.
