WWE: Mustafa Ali Should Win, But Here’s Why Buddy Murphy Will
By Bryan Heaton
The “Other Guy” May Have Something to Say About an Ali Victory
When you really look at it closely, the idea of a Mustafa Ali victory at Survivor Series should be a forgone conclusion. He’s one of the most popular WWE superstars, he’s valuable to the company, and he holds the psychological advantage over his opponent. In fact, the only reason he may be considered an “underdog” is that Buddy Murphy is the reigning champion, and not Ali.
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But even with all that evidence on his side, there’s one big, glaring problem standing between Ali and a Cruiserweight Championship victory: Cedric Alexander.
Since winning the Cruiserweight Championship at Super Show-Down, Murphy has only had a single match — this past week against Mark Andrews while WWE was on their tour of the United Kingdom. Notice that said match was not a contractually guaranteed rematch for Alexander, who’s been on a bit of a losing streak on 205 Live as of late.
Murphy’s reign is still in its infancy, and the way he was built up upon his arrival to 205 Live, I can’t imagine it ending so soon. Plus, even though it’s 205 Live, it’s still WWE: when a champion loses a title, he or she is entitled to a rematch. And while Drake Maverick has stripped Alexander of his rematch for now, it’s pretty clear he’ll eventually get one.
So how can Ali win the title now? Whether it’s shenanigans by Murphy to wriggle out of the match still champion, or even a heel turn by Alexander that nullifies the finish of the match at Survivor Series, Ali seems destined to lose this one. Even with all the evidence in his favor, the timing is just wrong.
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That’s not to say we’ll never see a Mustafa Ali reign as Cruiserweight Champion. He’s too good to never ascend the mountain. But at Survivor Series in Los Angeles, he’s going to be on the wrong end of the decision.