Top WWE Superstar Praises Mustafa Ali
Kofi Kingston recently spoke with Alistair McGeorge of Metro UK and talked about how he hoped to face Mustafa Ali in a "perfect match" at WrestleMania 37 last year.
Kingston noted how their history goes back to 2019 when an injury took Ali out of the WWE Title chase, paving the way for KofiMania and Kingston's inaugural WWE Title win over Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 35. Kofi then hoped to face Ali at WrestleMania 37, but WWE officials nixed the match. WrestleMania 37 ended up with Kofi and Xavier Woods dropping the RAW Tag Team Titles to AJ Styles and Omos, while Ali wasn't on the card at all.
Ali had referenced his past with Kingston early in 2021, while still the leader of RETRIBUTION, and Kingston says he felt like they had something special waiting to be tapped into.
"It was perfect! It was written, you didn't even have to go out of your way to creatively write anything else, it was perfect!," Kofi said. "But alas, that's not the direction that 'the office,' I guess, wanted to go in. That's just kinda the way that it goes! Maybe down the line we'll get a change to revisit that opportunity."
Kingston made these comments during a 2021 interview with Metro UK, which are just now being released due to Ali requesting his WWE release. Kingston recalled how he was told a few things regarding one direction, but plans changed and they went in another direction for WrestleMania 37.
Kingston continued and praised Ali as an innovator in the ring.
"I was told a few things, and we start working towards those things that we're told, and then all of a sudden it's not those things," Kofi said. "But that's really kind of standard fare for us. It was really disappointing, man, because I think he's so amazing in the ring and such an innovator.
"He finds ways to do the littlest things in such a different way, but he puts his own spin on it. He has a great mind for the business and a great mind for storytelling."
Kingston also praised the way Ali created his own video packages to enhance his persona on social media, which we saw more of during the RETRIBUTION storyline.
"He's not being told to do that, that's just him taking advantage or trying to make the most of what's been given to him," Kingston said of Ali's videos. "I would love to get in there and mix it up with him. I thought it would've been the perfect opportunity to do so, but again things change, and that's the nature of the beast. Not to say I wasn't upset about it, but I wasn't really surprised that they did change."
Ali's latest video came this past weekend when he revealed that he has requested his WWE release, which you can see here. There is still no word on if WWE will grant the release, but we will keep you updated.
Stay tuned for more.