Mustafa Ali was among the mass WWE talent releases on the main roster and NXT last week. He had been working in NXT and had reinvented himself.
Originally, Ali was supposed to challenge Dominik Mysterio for the North American Title at NXT No Mercy this Saturday. However, Dominik will now defend the title against Trick Williams.
WWE NXT officials were frustrated with the lack of communication from higher-ups regarding the releases, especially since they were trying to bring in more familiar names.
According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the decision to release Ali was made late in the process.
