38-year-old star had a private conversation with Triple H; WWE offered him a contract that same week
A former WWE star recently revealed that he probably wouldn't have been hired by WWE if it hadn't been for his talk with Triple H. Mustafa Ali revealed to Chris Van Vliet that he received a call from WWE shortly after he had a chat with The Game.
Back in 2016, Ali was put in the Cruiserweight Classic tournament as a replacement for Brazilian star Zumbi. 38-year-old Ali later became a mainstay on TV but there's an interesting story behind him bagging a contract with the promotion, and it involves current Chief Content Officer Triple H.
Mustafa Ali recently sat down with Chris Van Vliet on his Insight podcast. He shared a story of how he got his WWE contract back in 2016.
"The Cruiserweight classic happened. Everyone got a contract except for me. I was the alternate that got called. So I think there was a list and I just wasn't on the list. So, everyone got a deal and very sheepishly, I did two or three NXTs, 'Extra work' things, Hideo Itami beat me up or something like that. And after that, I just went up to Hunter. I was like, 'Hey! Do you think I'm going to get a contract?' And I think he was just kind of, 'There's so many dogs and so many bones, I can only give up so many bones, it's the timing thing.' And I go, 'Okay, he's just politely telling me to like get away.' And I go, 'Thank you for your time sir.' And that week I got a call." [1:22:24-1:23:05]
Mustafa Ali's WWE run ended last year
Mustafa Ali's run in the Stamford-based promotion lasted about seven years. He did quite well for himself during the stint as a mid-card act.
He was the leader of the RETRIBUTION stable and was also one of the best high flyers in the company, putting on compelling matches against many top stars.
Unfortunately, Ali never won a title in the company. He was let go along with several other superstars in September 2023 just nine days before a North American Title match against Dominik Mysterio on NXT.
He's still actively wrestling and many of his fans are hoping to see him make a return to work under the Triple H regime somewhere down the line.
Please credit Insight with Chris Van Vliet and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling if you use Ali's quotes!