"Who's the real American Nightmare?" - WWE star wants first-time-ever match against Cody Rhodes
Mustafa Ali has expressed an interest in facing three WWE RAW Superstars, including Cody Rhodes.
Ali debuted in WWE in June 2016, four weeks after Rhodes initially left the company. Six years later, the two men are now members of the same RAW roster, but have not yet crossed paths.
Speaking on Corey Graves’ After The Bell podcast, the former 205 Live star made it clear that Rhodes is in his sights.
“Even Cody Rhodes, The American Nightmare, I’ve never stepped in the ring with him,” Ali said. “I just recently met him, obviously as he’s joined us, but I don’t know, I’ve watched a few of his matches here and I was like, ‘I can do this and that,’ and I think it’s a cool concept. Who’s the real American Nightmare, Cody? Let’s find out, huh?” [44:59-45:21]
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Due to their mutual rivals, Ali and Rhodes could realistically become involved in each other’s storylines in the near future. Although The American Nightmare is predominantly feuding with Seth Rollins, both he and Ali have recently faced The Miz and Theory.
Cody Rhodes is not the only WWE star on Mustafa Ali’s radar
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Before joining WWE, Mustafa Ali faced Seth Rollins at independent shows in 2009 and 2010. While the two men have competed in the same multi-man matches in WWE, they have never gone one-on-one in a televised encounter.
Moving forward, the former Cruiserweight Classic competitor wants to settle his feud with The Miz and United States Champion Theory. Beyond that, he plans to finally face Rollins again.
“Once I defeat Theory and become the new United States Champion, I would love to do something with Miz,” Ali said. “Another guy that I haven’t stepped in the ring with [for] a long time, but I know a lot of fans are calling for the match… Seth Freakin’ Rollins. We’ve known each other a very, very long time, even tangoed up a few times on the independent scene.” [44:31-44:53]
Ali’s most recent televised match ended in defeat against Veer Mahaan on the May 16 episode of RAW. Since then, the 36-year-old has unsuccessfully challenged Theory for the United States Championship at live events.
Please credit After The Bell and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.