8 Ups And 4 Downs From Last Night's WWE Raw (July 20)

by Scott Carlson

1. Happy Returns

Cedric Alexander Mustafa Ali ricochet Raw
WWE.com

After seven months off WWE TV, Mustafa Ali returned Monday night to team up with Ricochet and Cedric Alexander to provide some high-octane, high-energy wrestling.

The three cruiserweights teamed up to defeat MVP, Bobby Lashley and Shelton Benjamin when Ali hit a 450 splash on MVP, getting to showcase his skills and look strong his in return to action. You hoped that he wouldn’t get sandbagged in his first match, but you weren’t sure until Ali nailed the 450 to pick up the win.

It will remain to be seen whether Ali – a wrestler once targeted for a main event push before injury derailed it – is utilized properly and gets a decent push, or if he’s just the third member of a jobber-to-the-stars team that loses more than it wins.

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Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fortunately became a fan in time for WrestleMania III and came back as a fan after a long high school hiatus before WM XIV. Monday nights in the Carlson household are reserved for viewing Raw -- for better or worse.