Naomi Is Thankful To Asuka

Last night’s SmackDown Live saw from Fresno, California witnessed current WWE SmackDown Women’s Champion Asuka successfully defend her title against Naomi. This was he first title defense since winning the title from Becky Lynch in the triple-threat Tables, Ladders and Chair match on Sunday’s TLC pay-per-view event.

After her loss to Asuka, Naomi was interviewed by Mike Rome where he asked her how she is going to use this opportunity for her future success, this is what she said:

“You know what? SmackDown is the land of opportunity and I saw an opportunity tonight and I took it. Asuka is my friend and to me Asuka is one of the best. As well as Becky, and Charlotte. But I am just as good as those women, and I wanna be in the conversation, I wanna be there in those matches and I am not sitting in the back anymore, whenever I see an opportunity, from here on out I am gonna do what I gotta do, and I am gonna take it. And this doesn’t change anything between me and Asuka and our friendship. It’s all about love and respect and she gave me an amazing match tonight, and I am thankful and I learned a lot and this won’t be my last shot at the title, I can guarantee you that.”

• 5 Takeaways From WWE SmackDown (12/18)

Mustafa Ali Now Now Part Of SmackDown Roster

Mustafa Ali made his début on SmackDown on the 11 December edition of SmackDown where he faced Daniel Bryan and earned praise for his performance.

On this week’s episode, Ali returned again and was in a tag-team match with AJ Styles as he defeated the team of Daniel Bryan and Andrade “Cien” Almas by pinning Bryan.

It was unknown at the time if these were just one-off performances from the star or if he is going to make the shift to the Blue Brand. But now, his WWE Superstar profile has been moved to the SmackDown Live roster so it’s pretty much official that he is now a member of SDLive.

While Mustafa Ali wasn’t able to win his match against Daniel Bryan on the latest episode of SmackDown Live, his debut on the Brand was by no means a failure.

Ali won a lot of hearts with just one match against the WWE Champion and as we noted before, a number of stars praised his performance on the show this past Tuesday.

Now Mustafa has also reflected on his debut against Bryan via the following tweet, recalling how he has gone from being an alternate for Cruiserweight Classic to competing against one of the greatest:

Last night on #SDLive, the guy that was an alternate in the Cruiserweight Classic, stood toe-to-toe with the @WWE Champion. Dream on, dream on. #205Live pic.twitter.com/w3uKzrkfxM

— Mustafa Ali (@MustafaAli_X) December 12, 2018

So far there is no word yet on if Mustafa Ali was brought in to the Blue Branded Show just for one night or if he will be wrestling there frequently.

Though seeing how WWE has been using some other 205 Live Stars like Lio Rush on Raw, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Ali ends up being a regular on the show.

Mustafa started his wrestling career in 2003 and wrestled for a number of indie companies for more than a decade. He found his way into the spotlight in 2016 when Brazilian wrestler Zumbi was unable to compete in CWC and Ali was brought in by WWE as his replacement.

This week’s episode of SmackDown Live saw the brand debut of Mustafa Ali in a bout against Daniel Bryan. This match had become a dream match for many after seeing Ali performing on 205 Live in last few months. While Mustafa was not able to win this bout, his debut performance was still praised by not only the fans who have been following him but various WWE superstars as well.

Reacts to Mustafa Ali’s SmackDown Debut

Below is a photo Jack Gallagher posted where a number of 205 Live Stars are seen watching Ali’s debut on the Blue Brand and some other tweets from various WWE Stars on his arrival:

https://twitter.com/GentlemanJackG/status/1072662429295874049

So glad that the world is getting a chance to see how good @MustafaAliWWE is, the world is yours my friend. #midwestkids

— Ruby Soho (@realrubysoho) December 12, 2018

.@MustafaAliWWE is one of the best we have. #SDLive #205Live

— Matthew Rehwoldt (@DramaKingMatt) December 12, 2018

Go @MustafaAliWWE! #SDLive pic.twitter.com/pxUTlaCdpf

— Bayley (@itsBayleyWWE) December 12, 2018

Yesssssss @MustafaAliWWE on my tv!!!! ???

— Renee Paquette (@ReneePaquette) December 12, 2018

Two WWE superstars are headed to EVOLVE – Mustafa Ali and Kassius Ohno.

First up is the 205 Live star. Last week, it was announced that EVOLVE would return to Livonia, MI on Nov. 9th for EVOLVE 115 and Chicago, IL on Nov. 10th for EVOLVE 116 for shows that will feature Ali in action. WWE announced on Wednesday that he would battle DJZ at EVOLVE 115 while he’ll take on Darby Allin the following the night.

Ali, AR Fox, The Skulk, Austin Theory with Priscilla Kelly, Anthony Henry, JD Drake, Josh Briggs are advertised for both events while DJ Z is only booked for the 11/9 show and Darby Allin and EVOLVE Champion Shane Strickland are booked for the 11/10 show.

WWE also announced that Kassius Ohno will return to EVOLVE in December at EVOLVE 117 on Saturday, Dec. 15, in Queens, N.Y., and at EVOLVE 118 on Sunday, Dec. 16, in Deer Park, N.Y. As of this writing, his opponents have yet to be revealed.

He will be a special guest trainer at a World Wrestling Network Seminar/Tryout on Sunday, Dec. 16, on Long Island.

For those who don’t know, WWE and EVOLVE have had a working relationship in place for a few years now. EVOLVE’s booker, Gabe Sapolsky, also works as a producer for Triple H in NXT.

WWE 205 Live star Mustafa Ali was recently interviewed by The Express Tribune and talked about his journey to the WWE. Ali has been wrestling since 2003. He worked the independent circuit for over a decade before landing a deal with WWE.

Ali did, however, have a tryout with WWE in 2013. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out and he was turned down by the professional wrestling juggernaut:

“I don’t think people really realize how insane it is that I’m in the position I am in today. Prior to the Cruiserweight Classic, I had a tryout with WWE in 2013 and was told that I wasn’t what they were looking for at the moment.”

Three years later, Ali got his WWE opportunity when he replaced Zumbi in the Cruiserweight Classic. Despite being eliminated in the first round of the tournament, Ali eventually found himself on 205 Live:

“Almost everyone else on the roster was well traveled and better known, competing in some of the biggest independent companies all over the world. I didn’t have that, I didn’t have a Ring of Honor run, I didn’t compete at [PWG Battle of Los Angeles].

“I was a guy that stayed close to my local independent scene in Chicago because I simply had to. My family depended on my income, so my ‘real job’ [as a policeman] took priority.

“So I had to work really hard just within the show to prove that I was worth everyone’s time and that I could compete with these international stars. Now, you can’t talk about 205 Live without mentioning my name.”

Cedric Alexander is now the second longest reigning Cruiserweight Champion in the title’s short lineage. He is currently at 101 days as champion, 96 days short of Neville’s 197-day record.

Last night on 205 Live, General Manager Drake Maverick made an announcement regarding who Alexander’s next title defense will be against. Maverick announced a #1 contenders match for next week featuring 4 of the division’s top-ranked competitors.

Next week, Mustafa Ali, TJP, Hideo Itami, and Drew Gulak will meet in a fatal 4-way match. The winner will earn a title shot against Cedric Alexander.

205 Live Title Picture

Alexander won the title by defeating Mustafa Ali in the finals of a tournament to declare a new champion. The title had been vacated after Enzo Amore was released from the company. Alexander defeated Mustafa Ali on the WrestleMania 34 Kickoff show.

Since then, Alexander has defended the title against Kalisto, Buddy Murphy, and most recently, Hideo Itami.

205 Live 7/17 Results

• TJP defeated Noam Dar
  • This was a rematch from two weeks ago when Dar defeated TJP in under 30 seconds.
• Drew Gulak defeated Danny Garcia
  • After the match, Gulak stated his case for a Cruiserweight title shot.
  • Danny Garcia wrestles indies in the Toronto area.
• Lio Rush defeated Akira Tozawa
  • Rush wins his first real test since debuting on 205 Live.
  • Rush pulled Tozawa off the top rope as he was going for his Senton. This allowed Rush to hit his frog-splash for the win.

Last night on 205 Live, General Manager Drake Maverick scheduled Cedric Alexander’s next Cruiserweight title defense.

2 weeks ago, Hideo Itami defeated Buddy Murphy and Mustafa Ali in a triple threat match. Maverick has now scheduled the Itami versus Alexander match for next week.

https://twitter.com/WWEMaverick/status/1014482196760088576

This week on 205 Live, Mustafa Ali and Buddy Murphy would meet in a no disqualification match. The winner of the match is likely in a position to challenge the winner of Hideo Itami vs Cedric Alexander title match next week.

205 Live Results 7/3/18

Century Link Center
Omaha, NE

1. Noam Dar defeated TJP

• TJP has been asking Drake Maverick to give him better competition for several weeks now. Maverick told him he had picked his opponent for this week himself. TJP questioned whether Maverick should actually be doing this every week, seeing as he is the GM of the brand.
• Noam Dar was the surprise opponent. The returning Scottish SuperNova made short work of TJP.

2. Akira Tozawa defeated Jason Strife

• Lio Rush came out to do guest commentary during this match.
• This was the 3rd straight victory for Tozawa on 205 Live. He defeated Tony Nese last week and another local talent 2 weeks before that. His last loss was to Drew Gulak on an episode of Main Event from June 4th, 2018.
• After the match, Lio Rush said, unlike Tozawa he doesn’t wait for anything.
• Rush then challenged Tozawa to a future match.

3. Mustafa Ali defeated Buddy Murphy (no disqualification match)

• Ali started the match off with a diving senton to the outside on top of Murphy and things just kind of went from there.
• Some of the big spots included Ali giving Murphy a Spanish fly from the guardrail on top of an announce table. Ali also gave Murphy a super-plex from the top an over-turned set of steel steps. Murphy also used the steps to jump over the ring ropes onto Ali.
• The finish of the match began when Ali got tied up in the ring ropes and Murphy delivered several running knees to his face. After untying Ali, Murphy went for the pin but only got a close 2-count. Ali then fought back and gave Murphy a tornado DDT off the steel steps and got the 3-count for the win.
• The commentators suggested Ali will be watching next week’s title match closely.

Tonight’s episode of 205 Live will emanate from Century Link Center in Omaha, NE. The featured main event will see Buddy Murphy take on his rival, Mustafa Ali in a no disqualification match.

205 Live General Manager, Drake Maverick, announced the match last week on social media.

https://twitter.com/WWEMaverick/status/1012044275771756544

205 Live 7/3/18 Preview

https://twitter.com/WWEMaverick/status/1013956939670261760

Lio Rush is in Omaha, NE

• Aside from the main event, the only other known segment for the show features 205 Live newcomer, Lio Rush.
• Rush defeated Dewey James in his debut last week. He was also joined backstage by one of his more famous fans, Danielle Fishel.
• Fishel had also followed Rush’s career when he competed at PWG shows.
• All we know is Rush is in the city and will be on 205 Live. It’s not clear if he will be wrestling in another squash match or just appearing on the show, however.

Buddy Murphy vs Mustafa Ali NO DQ Match

• Tonight’s main event will feature 2 of the top ranked cruiserweights on the brand.
• Both Murphy and Ali were in-line for another shot at Cedric Alexander but Hideo Itami won a 3-way match to move to the top of the contenders.
• Both Murphy and Ali have been as close to cruiserweight gold as possible without having won the title.
• Murphy is 5-2 in single’s matches in the cruiserweight division. His only losses have been to Ali and Cedric Alexander. He’s another 1-1 in multi-person matches.
• Ali and Murphy are 1-1-1 against each other in single’s action.
• Ali is 6-3-1 in 2018 single’s matches. He’s another 1-6 in multi-person matches.

Other Cruiserweight Developments

Current speculation is that Drew Gulak’s brother, Rory Gulak, may have signed a deal with WWE. Rory was one of 40 hopefuls who attended tryouts at the Performance Center last week. He would later Tweet out the following comments:

“Did I die and go to wrestling heaven? Extremely thankful and grateful to be apart of something as amazing as this tryout. Cant say thanks enough to everyone for their time and helping me get this far. One step closer to reuniting The Amazing Gulaks”

https://twitter.com/RoryGulak/status/1013170455509860353?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1013170455509860353&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mandatory.com%2Fwrestlezone%2Fnews%2F970897-edge-wishes-on-canada-day-rory-gulak-reacts-to-wwe-tryout

205 Live General Manager, Drake Maverick, opened up last night’s episode of 205 Live by announcing Hideo Itami was suspended. Itami attacked Mustafa Ali and Buddy Murphy last week during their main event match and would miss last night’s show as a result.

Maverick would later book Itami, Ali, and Murphy to face each other in a triple threat match next week. The winner could move into a spot to challenge for Cedric Alexander’s Cruiserweight Championship soon.

It’s what they want…

NEXT WEEK, @HideoItami vs. @MustafaAliWWE vs. @WWE_Murphy in a #TripleThreat match on #205Live! @WWENetwork @WWEMaverick pic.twitter.com/i0AUNZxzEd

— WWE (@WWE) June 13, 2018

Hideo Itami vs Mustafa Ali vs Buddy Murphy

First of all, Nice jacket every week.

Second of all, Great idea.

I’m going to make #205Live more interesting. https://t.co/6Vh6epfPRV

— KENTA aka Lil’K (@KENTAG2S) June 13, 2018

Throughout last night’s episode of 205 Live, both Buddy Murphy and Mustafa Ali asked Maverick for a match with Itami. Maverick decided then to give them both what they want. Now, all three will meet in a triple threat match next week.

Also this week on 205 Live, the Lucha House Party picked up a win over Jack Gallagher, Brian Kendrick, and Drew Gulak. Mustafa Ali also picked up a win over Tony Nese and Akira Tozawa picked up a win over a local competitor. Tozawa and Itami’s tag-team appears broken up permanently. We still don’t know when the brand plans to introduce tag-team titles but they continue to book tag matches on the show. There are also no plans for a cruiserweight match on the Money in the Bank PPV this weekend.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bjq7p0yhukC/?hl=en&taken-by=wwemaverick

205 Live this week featured two matches in the cruiserweight division. The brand continues to build towards as the introduction of cruiserweight tag-team championships, although it is still not clear when those will be unveiled.

Jack Gallagher and the Brian Kendrick are in the middle of a rivalry with the members of the Lucha House Party over tag-team bragging rights currently. The team of Akira Tozawa and Hideo Itami had previously been teaming together but that after a couple of losses and the shoving match, the team appears to have disbanded.

Kendrick would face Lince Dorado from the Lucha House Party in single’s action this week. Meanwhile, at the top of the cruiserweight rankings, Buddy Murphy and Mustafa Ali would face off in last night’s main event.

205 Live 6/5/18 Results

1) Lince Dorado defeated the Brian Kendrick

In the first match of the night, Lince Dorado hit a springboard cutter on Kendrick for the victory.

With Gallagher absent this week (was at a wedding), Drew Gulak accompanied Kendrick to the ring. Gulak has been vocally critical of the Lucha House Party and their high-flying tactics.

Following the match, Gulak attacked Dorado but was chased away by the other members of the Lucha House Party.

It was later revealed that the Lucha House Party will face Drew Gulak, Jack Gallagher, and the Brian Kendrick in a trios match next week.

2) TJP defeated Brian Keith

This was a squash match for TJP. Early in the match, he went to the outside and grabbed a mic. He expressed his dismay that he hasn’t been given tougher competition all the while putting his opponent in submission holds. He insinuated another GM might appreciate his talent better. Keith eventually tapped out while in a sharpshooter.

Lio Rush is Coming to 205 Live

Highly touted cruiserweight prospect, Lio Rush, is coming to 205 Live. The small but entertaining Rush barely wrestled in NXT during his short stay with the brand.

3) Buddy Murphy and Mustafa Ali Goes to a No-Contest

After a long match, it seemed as though Ali was in a position to avenge his recent loss to Murphy but Hideo Itami’s interference caused the match to be thrown out.

Itami took out both competitors before yelling for no one in particular to respect him. Perhaps, Itami is looking to be added to the cruiserweight title picture as well and this is why he interfered in last night’s main event.

Mustafa Ali left Paris this weekend with a souvenir.

Ali needed multiple staples in his head to close a wound that he suffered during his match against WWE Cruiserweight Champion Cedric Alexander at the WWE live event at the AccorHotels Arena in Paris, France.

The Ali-Alexander match was described as “the best match on the show,” and one that took a while to get the crowd in Paris going, but once they did, there were “This Is Awesome” chants and other big pops throughout the closing moments.

Also of note, the fans chanted “We Want Petiot” during the match in reference to a French participant in the WWE Cruiserweight Classic Tournament, Clement Petiot. Both Ali and Alexander acknowledged the chants at one point and after the match, Alexander even took a fans Petiot sign and pointed / posed with it on the entrance stage.

After the match, Ali took to social media to post a photo of the staples he received. Check out that photo below.

Leaving Paris with a memento pic.twitter.com/q3fRG2n0Hp

— Mustafa Ali (@MustafaAli_X) May 19, 2018

What are your thoughts on the gnarly photo of Mustafa Ali’s staples? Let us know by sounding off in the Comments section below.

WWE has announced the following for the two-hour WrestleMania 34 Kickoff pre-show on Sunday – the fifth annual Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, the inaugural WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal and the finals for the vacant WWE Cruiserweight Title with Cedric Alexander vs. Mustafa Ali.

The WrestleMania 34 Kickoff pre-show will begin at 5pm EST on Sunday. As noted, the second hour of the Kickoff will also air live on the USA Network.

WrestleMania 34 takes place on Sunday, April 8th from the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.

Below is the updated confirmed WrestleMania card:

Confirmed Matches:

WWE Universal Title Match
Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar

WWE Title Match
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. AJ Styles

Triple Threat for the WWE Intercontinental Title
Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor vs. The Miz

Fatal 4 Way for the WWE United States Title
Rusev vs. Bobby Roode vs. Jinder Mahal vs. Randy Orton

RAW Women’s Title Match
Nia Jax vs. Alexa Bliss

SmackDown Women’s Title Match
Asuka vs. Charlotte Flair

RAW Tag Team Title Match
Braun Strowman and a partner vs. Cesaro and Sheamus

Triple Threat for the SmackDown Tag Team Titles
The New Day vs. The Bludgeon Brothers vs. The Usos

Ronda Rousey and Kurt Angle vs. Triple H and Stephanie McMahon

Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn
Zayn and Owens will get their jobs back if they win, they will remain fired if they lose.

Kickoff Pre-show: Finals of the WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament
Cedric Alexander vs. Mustafa Ali

Kickoff Pre-show: Inaugural WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal
Mickie James, Bayley, Naomi, Becky Lynch, Liv Morgan, Sarah Logan, Ruby Riott, Lana, Natalya, Sasha Banks, Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville, TBA

Kickoff Pre-show: Fifth Annual Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Scott Dawson, Dash Wilder, Baron Corbin, Tye Dillinger, Mojo Rawley, Matt Hardy, Dolph Ziggler, Tyler Breeze, Fandango, TBA

Rumored Matches

John Cena vs. The Undertaker

– Following his loss to Bray Wyatt on RAW 25, “Woken” Matt Hardy teased the likes of Reby Hardy, his son Maxel, and Senor Benjamin coming to WWE with him. He also said he needs to return to the Hardy Compound to draw power from his ‘platoon.’ Hardy then stated that he needs to return to his “BROKEN” beginnings, teasing that he may soon be using the “Broken” gimmick instead of the “Woken” one he has been using on WWE TV as of late:

On this Eve in The York of New, I lost a single Battle in #TheGreatWar to an ETERNAL RIVAL.

I must return to The Hardy Compound & draw from the POWAH of my PLATOON.

They bring FOCUS to my MAGIC. pic.twitter.com/1OHfGITVyC

— MATT HARDY (@MATTHARDYBRAND) January 23, 2018

I've had a very PROLIFIC PREMONITION, #WOKENWarriors..

Following my setback in #TheGreatWar at #RAW25, I've been MANDATED by the #7Deities to return to & focus on my #BROKEN BEGINNINGS.

My MAGIC is most POTENT at The Hardy Compound. pic.twitter.com/RLLzMfGgC0

— MATT HARDY (@MATTHARDYBRAND) January 24, 2018

– In the main event of last night’s episode of 205 Live, Cedrick Alexander and Mustafa Ali put on an incredible main event that garnered “This Is Awesome” chants from the crowd. Highlights from the match, including both Alexander and Ali’s reactions, can be found below: