- Ali was scheduled to face Mysterio for the North American title at ‘No Mercy’
- He was performing on the NXT brand after dropping down from the main roster
- Other stars were also released on Thursday, including Dolph Ziggler and Emma
Mustafa Ali has left the WWE just a week before a scheduled title match, the man behind the character has revealed on Twitter, with a number of other stars also released.
Ali was due to take on Dominik Mysterio at NXT’s ‘No Mercy’ WWE event on September 30, but revealed his exit on his social media on Thursday.
He had been performing on the developmental NXT brand after dropping down this year, involved in a long-running feud for the North American title including Wes Lee, Tyler Bate and Mysterio.
He had been granted a match against Mysterio at No Mercy, but Mysterio was set to face fellow NXT star Dragon Lee on Monday night RAW next week.
On screen, Ali, played by Adeel Alam, had said he would go to RAW to confront the pair, but the match will now take place after his departure from the company.
Mustafa Ali has left the WWE just days before a scheduled title match against Dominik Mysterio at NXT’s ‘No Mercy’
Ali had been due to face Dominik Mysterio for the NXT North American title on September 30
He confirmed the new on social media on Thursday afternoon to the shock of many fans
‘I am longer working with WWE,’ he originally posted on X. ‘I look forward to the future. Thank you.’
He went onto correct the wording in a second post, writing: ‘No longer*. Sorry for the confusion.’
Alam had asked for his release from the company back in 2022, publicly sharing his request on social media in January, but the request was denied and he remained working.
‘I’m very comfortable talking about it,’ he told ‘WWE After The Bell with Corey Graves later in the year. ‘I believe private conversations are meant to be private. The reason it went public is because that private conversation went nowhere.
‘Anyone that’s ever worked with me, dealt with me as a human being, knows how much I love this place. How much I love sports entertainment. How much I love wrestling. This is the only thing I ever wanted to do. For me to even get to that point, that’s the issue.’
The company will need to adjust their plans for Monday’s show and the ‘No Mercy’ event following the decision.
During his time in WWE, Ali competed in the cruiserweight division before moving the SmackDown and challenging for both the WWE Championship and Intercontinental Championship, but won neither title.
He has been with the WWE since 2016 after signing for the company from the independent circuit, but leaves after seven years
He was also the leader of the Retribution stable between 2020 and 2021 before his stablemates turned on him, and enjoyed a short run in a tag team with Mansoor before the two feuded.
He took a three-month break from the company after requesting his release, returning in April 2022 to face The Miz, losing in his bid to become the United States Champion.
The 37-year-old’s final match in the company was on September 5, when he beat Lee on NXT, pinning the current No1 contender for the North American Title.
Australian star Emma was also released on Thursday less than a year after making her return to the company, as well as Rick Boogs, who recently returned from a long injury lay-off, Aliyah, Elias, Top Dolla, Riddick Moss, Dolph Ziggler and Shelton Benjamin.