Assessing The Futures Of 10 WWE Stars Who Didn't Make The Royal Rumble 2022 Cut

6. Mustafa Ali

Sad Cesaro wwe
WWE

Of all of the people within WWE right now, nobody is more eager to depart Vince McMahon's sports entertainment juggernaut than Mustafa Ali.

Ali had made it very publicly clear that he wants out of WWE, taking to Twitter on 16 January to let his fans and followers know that he'd requested his release from the company.

Unfortunately for the Chicago native, that request has yet to be granted. Instead, reports have surfaced to say WWE has zero plans to release Ali at this time. To once again hammer home his point, Mustafa responded to any potential Royal Rumble appearance by doubling-down on his intentions to leave WWE in his rear-view mirror.

As for what's in the future of Mustafa Ali, it looks as if he'll be forced to spend the next however long in limbo - desperate to leave a company who has no intentions to let him go or utilise him in a way that befits his outstanding ability.

The belief is that Ali signed a multi-year new contract in early 2021, so WWE holds all the cards right now. The former RETRIBUTION leader likely will get his way eventually, but you have to think the ever-stubborn WWE won't budge on this matter at any point in the immediate future.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.