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Mustafa Ali On Leaving WWE, RETRIBUTION, Brock Lesnar Stealing His MITB Win, TNA X Division Champion
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Mustafa Ali (MustafaAli_X) is a professional wrestler previously signed to TNA and WWE. He sits down with Chris Van Vliet at West Coast Creative Studio in Hollywood, CA to talk about his new wrestling school in Chicago called Chicago Wrestling Center, how his injury led to Kofi Kingston's WWE Championship win at WrestleMania 35, being eliminated by Nia Jax in the Royal Rumble, nearly winning Money in the Bank before Brock Lesnar entered the match, the infamous Retribution faction, his viral RKO counter and more!
Quote I'm thinking about: "The cost of never taking a risk is spending the rest of your life wishing you had."
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"I'm really excited. It's something that's been sitting in the back of my mind for quite a while, but it's located in Niles. That's like 15 minutes from O'Hare in Chicago, and it's just the best of the best, man. I'm gonna have the best trainers. AEW, WWE, TNA, they all come to town. I'm gonna invite them to come hang out and train and do seminars with the students there. So we launch in January 2025 I'm super excited."
"I think the one thing that comes up is there's never a good time for anything. One of my favorite quotes is 'Man makes plans and God laughs.' Who are we to know what's gonna happen in a year? I know people are financially struggling, so if there's one aspect of you not financially being able to go to wrestling school, I understand that. But I've also seen people cut their cell phone bill and their Hulu and they're gonna say they're going to this school one way or the other. They're gonna wait a couple more tables. If you truly want something the school opens up in January 25, the kids that want to be there are gonna be there. But the advice I would give to people that are planning on going to a wrestling school is, I don't want to say workout, but it's intense. You have to realize someone else's life is literally in your hands when you're picking them up and you're running and this and that. So fatigue and weakness from a physical standpoint is very dangerous, both to you and your partner. So I would say that would be my biggest advice, and then be prepared for the mental challenge. I don't want to say that I'm doing like old school training, but I do feel there's a lot of schools, and I'm gonna make headlines with this, probably there's a lot of schools that'll take your money. I won't. There's an application form you have to send out, you have to fill out a waiver, and there's a big portion of it that's called, Why do you want to train here? And if I don't feel what you're saying off of that app, I won't approve the application. I'm very, very blessed and fortunate to be very financially secure. This is literally me doing something because it's a passion project on the side. I still got a million dreams in front of me that I am chasing. I'm just not sleeping in the process. But inside this is something again, I feel like I was obligated to do and my standards are here, and one way or the other, you're gonna meet me here."
"This is a super random side note, but this is how sensitive this character can be. In TNA, I had a feud going with Mike Bailey. I'm talking about weeks before a real-life event happened. We came up with this idea where after I've been torturizing Mike Bailey for weeks, and beating up his friends like that. I'm pulling up into the arena with an SUV, and I have a campaign manager with me. His name is campaign Singh. And I'm like man, these idiot voters, they love me. Watch this. I put my window down. And he's like, Sir, I don't think that's a good way. I'm like, shut up. They love me. And we have all these fans going and I'm shaking their hands, these idiots. And as I'm shaking their hands, I go back to Singh I'm like, they love me. Mike Bailey appears within this crowd and Mike Bailey grabs me by the throat. He's trying to pull me out of the SUV, and Secret Service jumps on him. And I'm like, drive, drive, drive, and we drive away. Later that night in a promo, I say Mike Bailey tried to attack me in what the public has deemed an assassination attempt. We tape this, the week that's going to go live, which is a Thursday earlier that week, the incident happens with Trump, the assassination attempt. So I'm sitting and I'm watching this, oh no. Some people had nothing to do with it, right? A genuine coincidence. So I had to text TNA because some people gonna think we're parodying it or making fun of it. No matter how you feel about someone, death is death. I personally don't wish that upon anybody. So I made the call, hey, I really think you should edit this clip. So we ended up editing that part out. But it just goes to show you the volatile, sensitive nature of this character. So, that's why I am a little bit more OG Ali over here. But yeah, I just got to evaluate and see if it's something I want to continue doing long-term because of an incident like that."
"The thing is, again, wrestling rings aren't as nice and padded as they think they are. The cause of concern with that move is the ropes actually, more for me, I would feel terrible if I hurt somebody because you had to realize I'm jumping backwards. So there's a good portion of this move where I have lost my opponent, and the next time I see my opponent is when I'm landing. So that's why I'll check back once, and I gotta take that picture and I hope he's still there. Again, margin of error, it's a shin or a knee or an elbow across their throat, their face, their head. So, yeah, just as far as how I knew, I have no idea. I must have figured out how to do it when I was 16. Because, you know, you're 16, you're indestructible."
"I say it the right way. So I mean, I'll take the blame on that. So when I started with WWE, everyone's super nice, right? You go introduce yourself, and I'm just that guy where it's like, I'm the new guy here. I don't want to rock the boat. I'm in WWE. It's very like, you're taken aback. So when you're introducing yourself, like, 'Hey, I'm Mustafa Ali.' [They responded incorrectly] 'Mustafa?' Yeah, sure, you just go with it. And again, it's on me. I just didn't have the balls at the time to correct anybody. So eventually I was like, oh man, they're all just saying it that way. I should just say it too, because I think it's just easier for the audience to say, and I'm not proud about it. I just kind of like, hey, I can say it's not a big deal, but it's your name, of course it's a big deal. But at the time, again, just super unsure of myself. Didn't have the confidence, or the stock, honestly, to say much. So I was saying my name incorrectly for a long time."
"Again, I guess in a way, I’m not proud of it, but trying to make myself a little bit more marketable. We've seen the clips that go that guy's name's too hard, I'm just gonna call him Mo. I didn't want that. My biggest fear, which came to light, was if I correct them and my name's too hard to pronounce, they're just gonna call me Ali, which, sure enough, when I brought up that, hey, you know, I brought it up one time, by the way, this the correct pronunciation. So Road Dogg explained to me. What actually happened was when you do live events, these producers, they write reports, and this is during a babyface run. I think I was working with Shinsuke Nakamura or something like that. One portion of the crowd was chanting 'Mustafa' and the other crowd was chanting Ali.' It was a weird chant and just dies out, and it happened a few nights, so that got written in the report. So whoever makes decisions, I'm assuming it was Vince at the time, just call him Ali, just one name. That's how I lost my name."
"Not surprised that it happened. Surprised when it did happen? Yeah. I think I was in NXT at the time, and I actually had a pay-per-view match scheduled that weekend with Dominik Mysterio for the North American Championship."
"I don't believe anything until it happens. But yeah, I don't mind sharing. I think that was the plan. But mind you, the plan was actually to put the North American Champion on me months prior. But WWE is so smart with advertising and contract negotiation. So NXT, the network deal was coming up. Shawn in NXT is awesome. He explains to me, he's like, 'Hey, we're gonna put the North American Championship on you.' What happens is the network deal is coming up, and this is when Judgment Day, specifically Dom, is just white hot. I mean, they're still white hot right now, but Dom was next level right there. So they were like, 'Hey, everyone in Judgment Day has a championship. We want to put a championship on Dom, and we want to spike the ratings for NXT.' Because the idea is, if you spike the ratings with the contract negotiations this helps you. So this is when Seth was coming and Becky was coming back. So I get a call from Shawn, 'Hey, we're actually putting the championship on Dom, and here's a reason.' I go, Yeah, that makes total sense, awesome. Do it like that. I didn't expect it coming. Dom's gonna come and challenge Wes Lee and beat him, great. So we do that. Then we do a three way match, which was super fun, with Dom, me and Wes Lee. And then [Shawn] was like, 'Hey, Dom is needed back on the main roster.' Poor guy was working six days a week. So I think that was a plan. Was it a surprise? No, because I saw WWE stock and WWE in general going this way [up], and my stock just going this way [down]."
"I think there's multiple paths, yeah. And the thing is there's good relations there. The thing with them moving to Netflix is very, very interesting, because it just opens things. I don't know how much the show is going to change, as far as dynamic, as far as rating, as far as what they're okay with."
"Just a series of unfortunate events. It's really, really cool, because from that came a really tight relationship and friendship with Kofi Kingston. We were in a talent meeting one time where they had someone come in for something, and the guy didn't know the product very well, and he kept looking at Kofi and calling him coffee. And because Kofi is such a nice guy, and he would not [correct him]. He's like, right coffee? And everyone’s laughing. Elimination Chamber, it all happened so fast. Come up to SmackDown, wrestle Daniel Bryan, losing that effort. But I think the next week I pinned him and I got AJ Styles. I'm like, What is going on? Get the word finally that we're moving you over to SmackDown full-time. You're done with 205, we're gonna get you a main roster contract, all this stuff. So it's all happening a million miles per hour. I want to say the week before, I got the heads up about, 'Hey, you're in the Elimination Chamber. Could you wrestle 60 minutes on SmackDown?' I was like, what? They go, 'Yeah, we're gonna do a gauntlet style thing.' I go, 'Yeah, I could wrestle 60 minutes.' I'm like, Man, I'm doing all this cardio. That week, I have a match with Randy and just kind of a slip of the boot. So Randy does like the stomp where he goes around, he stomps each body part. And one of the things, I think the compliment just went to my like man Ali sells so good. You hit something and it looks like he just sells so well. So I want to say Randy had either stomped me in the stomach, something like that, something that basically made me sit up to sell. I've watched Randy work for years, and usually it's stomp, and he takes his time and stomp, and then he takes his time. But for some reason, I guess, he was feeling to stomp me again in the stomach. So he went for two stomps. But when he stopped me the first time, I sat up, and the second stop was coming and just caught me right in the eye, and I could feel like the bones. I felt my face move and it was like, oh man. And in a second I'm like, Oh, I'm fine. I knew where I was. I was fine. But Randy keeps saying 'Yo your eye is flaring up really bad. Are you okay?' I'm fine. I promise I'm fine. It's just a black eye. We finished the match. We get back. Everyone's saying are you okay? I go, Yeah, I'm fine. It's just a black eye. Later that night, the finish of SmackDown was a big melee to set up the Elimination Chamber match. Eric Rowan's with Daniel Bryan at the time. So the spot had called for Eric Rowan to do the claw choke slam on the announce table. I take it, and I remember landing on the table, and I go oh no. The whole room is just spinning violently, I feel like I'm spinning on the table. I know I'm laying here, I'm messed up. So I'm like you probably just got rocked. Just give it a second. I get back. I'm all good. I'm all good, that weekend I have live events. I'm sorry, this is when I get the call about, hey, can you go, like, 60 minutes? I'm like yeah I can do it. I'm driving to these live events and I was like man, something's not right. I wrestled the first night, and I was like man, I'm gonna throw up, I'm not myself. I'm stumbling on myself, but I'm composed enough that I'm okay. The second night I'm in a tag team match, and I want to say my tag team partner was actually Tye Dillinger versus Samoa Joe and Shelton Benjamin, and just things happen in the ring. I was looking this way, but Shelton wanted me to go this way, and he kind of grabs me to give me this turnbuckle move I do where I get thrown in the turnbuckle. It looks like I knock myself out, except this time I really knock myself out right again, because I think I'm going here, but I get pulled this way, get rocked again, and now I'm like, I can't stand. Samoa Joe picks me up for the muscle buster. I'm able to slip out, get the quick pin, and I'm out of there. And, yeah, this part sucks. I'm sitting in the back Indian style on the floor, and a referee walks by. He goes, 'Hey, you good?' I go, yep. And he knows, goes and gets the doc. Doc comes. 'Hey, Ali, why don't you come with me?' And I know. I go, No, no, I'm good. They go, stand up. I go, No, I'm good. And eventually, I get bullied into the medical room. I'm grabbing everything I can. I just my back, and I was like, oh, yeah, okay 'Do you know where we're at?' Yeah. 'What town are we in?' We're here. I'm looking at the wall trying to see, I don't know anything. I'm gripping the table. Man, this part sucks because they wanted me basically to put my hands in front and I'm sitting on the little medical table. I'm holding it, they go put your hands up, so I do this and, man, I just eat it. They go this is massive, you're not well. So they all put me up and they, it's a whole protocol thing where the doc has to stay across you from the hotel room, transport me back home."
"I think mine was pretty exceptional. I couldn't stand correctly. It was really bad vertigo. So, we have to get you home, WWE arranges for transportation. And, yeah, that's what sucks. I'm like Okay, what's the process? Can I make Elimination Chamber? They go, 'Dude, you're out for months probably.' I was like, no! Then, they asked me to film something at home. I send it in, basically announcing I won't be in the Elimination Chamber. I’m heartbroken, but I'm going to come back better. And then this beautiful gift of KofiMania happens, and Kofi, what a guy and lightning in a bottle. The entire WWE universe is behind him. He has this magical gauntlet performance. He has this amazing performance at Elimination Chamber and those combined is what fueled KofiMania all the way to WrestleMania. Now, no way am I comparing, but as a competitor, of course, there's some jealousy, right? I'm watching. I'm like, man, could you imagine what a healthy Ali could do in the Elimination Chamber? But then I go and look and I'm so mad at myself. I'm like, if only I didn't take that bump at the live event. I'm sitting there kind of like, I could have, I would have been fine. And my wife's like, so you thought it would be a good idea to go in the Elimination Chamber concussed? I would have tried to scale something, you don't know, at the end of the day, I'm healthy, I'm happy. Everything works. I'm good. My brain isn't mush. WWE did the right thing. They protected me for the day. You gotta protect these athletes from themselves, because we have that thing. We get hit, we get up. The instinct is, I'm good."
"So, yeah, I show up to Money in the Bank, and they're like, 'Hey, you're winning it.' I go, 'What? Okay, cool.' So this is so funny because I'm one of the shorter guys in the match. So they actually had me climb up the ladder so they could adjust the briefcase so it was within grabbing distance of me. And all day we're putting this match together. Everyone's like, Hey, man, Congrats. Yeah, man, this is awesome. I was like, Oh, maybe I can get this briefcase to light up, because I was wearing the light of stuff at the time. I'm thinking this is one of those cloud 9 moments, I can't believe this is happening, because it's not happening. So the match is about to start. Entrances have started. I want to say Baron Corbin is making his entrance. I don't know why, I just have his music in my head. I have a very funny visual for you. So I'm wearing this light-up mask and I'm wearing this jacket that lights up and I have a glove, and they all kind of pulsate with lights, obviously. And Jamie Noble comes up. 'Hey, boss man wants to talk to you. Go talk to the boss.' I was like, Okay. The entrances are happening. Vince is looking up, and I come over. Now, mind you gorilla is completely dark, so I just have these red lights that are flashing on Vince's face. And he's all shadowy. So you can see the picture that I see right looking up him, he goes 'Change of plans. Do the match, everything you called. When the time's right I want you to climb up the ladder and grab the briefcase. Someone's going to come out. I want you to hold the briefcase and just have shock on your face. He's gonna run down, tip the ladder over, and you stay down. Do you understand?' And again, my lights are just flashing on his face, so I see what he's saying. But there's a moment where he goes black and it's red, black and it's red. I'm like, 'Copy that, sir.' I just walk away I'm like, It's Brock. Who else could it be? I'm walking, I'm like, whatever. My music is hitting. So he literally told me. None of the guys in the match know. Finn didn't know. Randy didn't know, Baron Corbin in the match, Drew McIntyre, Andrade. No one knew. I'm the only guy that knows. I'm walking down, I'm just focused on the match. At this point, the match happens, climbing up the thing and, man, it's just like, I know everyone's like, Well, why didn't you just grab the briefcase? I want to be like, because my boss told me."
"Well here's the thing that's my immediate response to him [Vince]. Well, my music's playing and he's got a vision. There's no point in arguing this time. So what you didn't see is, I climb up the ladder. I got my fingertips on the briefcase. Brock's music hits. I do the shock thing like I'm asked, and I'm like, they're gonna cut to Brock, but at some point they’ll come back to me. They didn't. But what I did is I did the slip thing where I try to get it, which you don't see on camera, the briefcase slips out of my hands. So when Brock gets in the ring, you see me trying, it just slipped up. I'm trying to regain possession of it so that I'm not just holding it for the whole time. That was my I'll cover it up this way, and then I would just tell Vince oh, it slipped out of my hand. So I climb up, I grab it. Brock's music hits. They cut to him. I do the slip. You don't see it, but when I'm looking down Brock hits a ladder out the way, and it just completely annihilates a cameraman named Rico. Just hits him in the head. He goes down. He needs stitches. And I'm watching this, I'm like, he's gonna murder me! I hope I'm not destroying the mystique of Brock here, but what a pro. Gets in the ring, grabs me, looks up to me. He's like, 'Hey, kid you ready?' And I'm like yeah? He says 'Okay, nice and easy, one, two.' And the thing is, he was so nice about the push that I was expecting this violent thing that I hurled myself off the ladder, and I end up hitting the top rope with my mouth, cutting my mouth completely my fault, and hurting myself, and I go down like he just pros pro man. I'm saying that, but you can see if you watch it back, if you cut to the clip of the guys on the floor selling. They're all very unamused that this match happened that way."
"So that spot wasn't originally for me. I don't know who it was for, but someone was not very much okay with getting eliminated by a woman. And I'm at this point where I'm trying to prove that I'm a pro’s pro. I'm down for whatever. And I can kind of see, I think it was Jamie Noble, because it was some sort of frantic search. I looked at Jamie. I was like, 'What's the spot?' He looked at me and he goes, 'Would you be okay with it?' I just go, Yep. What is it? He goes, 'Well, Nia is gonna beat up R-Truth, and then she's gonna take everyone's finisher. But before she does that I just need her to throw somebody [out].' I don't know who the original person is. I really don't know. But I remember going it’s a scripted show. It's fine. Me and Nia are homies. So I remember I told Nia hey, I'll do it. And she was so like, thank you. I could see the sense of relief. So I could see why some people were like, oh, man, that made you look weak. I go Nia is shoot strong as hell and could pick up anyone in this room right now, and she tossed me over. So we did the thing, hey, Nia, can I do the whole [thing] I'm not gonna hit you. I did this thing and then she head-butted me, picked me up. Gets talked about to this day. Actually, I think the RKO and the 619 she took in the Royal Rumble gets talked more. But yeah, it was a moment. I could see how some of the guys were like, Oh, I wouldn't have done that. One, I didn't have a problem with it. And two, I was looking like, I think that goes a long way to Vince and to Bruce. This guy didn't have a problem getting the spot over because that's a moment. That's what we want to do. We want to create moments. That was the honest intention behind it. So, yeah, it wasn't originally designed for me, from what I understand."
"Family, empathy and that I have this mindset."
