Mustafa Ali (wrestler)

Adeel Alam^[1] (born March 28, 1986),^[3] better known by his ring name Mustafa Ali, is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in WWE, where he worked from 2016 to 2023. Right now he is working on the independent circuit and also appears for TNA Wrestling (where he is a former X Division Champion) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Ali is the first WWE wrestler of Pakistani descent.^[4]

Mustafa Ali [1]
Ali in August 2019
Birth name	Adeel Alam
Born	(1986-03-28) March 28, 1986 (age 39) Bolingbrook, Illinois, U.S.
Spouse(s)	Uzma Alam ​ (m. 2011)​
Children	3
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)	Ali Prince Ali Ababwa[2] Mustafa Mal[2] Alto Mustafa Ali[2] Prince Mustafa Ali
Billed height	5 ft 10 in (178 cm)[2]
Billed weight	182 lb (83 kg)[2]
Billed from	Chicago, Illinois[2]
Debut	February 2, 2003

Professional wrestling career

Independent Circuit (2003-2016)

Alam has wrestled in many wrestling promotion. During his first six years he wrestled while wearing a mask.^[5] He wrestled during the day and work night shifts as a police officer.^[6]

WWE

205 Live (2016-2018)

On June 25, 2016, after Brazilian wrestler Zumbi was not able to participate in the WWE Cruiserweight Classic due to visa issues, WWE announced that Mustafa Ali would replace him. On July 20, he was eliminated from the tournament in the first round after losing to Lince Dorado.^[7] He appeared on the October 26 episode of NXT, where he and Dorado teaming with each other and entered Dusty Rohdes Tag Team Classic. But in the first round they were defeated by Kota Ibushi and TJ Perkins.^[8]

Professional Wrestling Moves

• ‌‌Finishing Moves
  • 054 (Imploding 450° Splash)
  • 450° Splash
  • Springboard Spanish Fly
• Signature Moves
  • Dropkick
  • Top con grio
  • Suicide dive
  • Thunder rolling neckbreaker
  • Middle rope jumping X-factor
  • Tornado DDT
  • Superkick
  • Chop
  • Jackhammer

Championships and accomplishments

• Dreamwave Wrestling
  • Dreamwave Alternative Championship (2 times, current)^[9]
  • Dreamwave World Championship (1 time)^[10]
• Elite Pro Wrestling
  • EPW Pro Television Championship (1 time)
• Freelance Wrestling
  • Freelance World Championship (1 time)^[11]
• Jersey All Pro Wrestling
  • JAPW Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)^[12]
• Midwestern States Pro Wrestling
  • MSPW Heritage Championship (1 time)
• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • Ranked No. 55 of the top 500 wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2019^[13]
• Proving Ground Pro
  • PGP Franchise Championship (1 time)^[14]
• Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
  • TNA X Division Championship (1 time)
• WrestleCrap
  • Gooker Award (2020) – as part of Retribution^[15]