New title match announced for TNA International champion Mustafa Ali.
While Mustafa Ali is scheduled to defend his TNA International title on the April 30 episode of TNA Impact against Adam Brooks, he has now also been announced for another title match.
On social media, it was announced that Ali will defend his TNA International title against a mystery opponent at the May 15th TNA Impact taping in Sacramento, California. Ali also claimed that the person who accepted the challenge currently holds a major championship outside of TNA.
“I have received word that a mystery opponent has answered the International Open Challenge. He himself holds a major championship outside of TNA. Who is he?” he wrote on social media.
As of now, there are no confirmations regarding Ali’s mystery opponent for the TNA International title.
After winning the TNA International Title at TNA Rebellion, Mustafa Ali instituted an open challenge to all independent wrestlers.
I have received word that a mystery opponent has answered the International Open Challenge. He himself holds a major championship outside of TNA.
While many champions successfully defended their titles, TNA Rebellion also crowned two new champions.
At TNA Rebellion, Mustafa Ali challenged Trey Miguel for the International Championship. After a close fight with several covers, Ali snatched the victory and won the title after Tasha Steelz distracted the referee, which allowed Jason Hotch & John Skyler to hit Miguel. Ali followed it up with a 450 splash to secure the pinfall and earn his new championship.
After a solid almost 13-minute bout, Ali defeated Miguel and became the new TNA International Champion.
Shortly after Ali’s win, The System (Bear Bronson and Brian Myers) defeated The Hardys (Jeff Hardy and Matt Hardy) to win the TNA World Tag Team Championship. The win marked an end for Jeff and Matt Hardy’s 265-day title reign.
While Bronson and Myers representing The System won titles, both Cedric Alexander and Eddie Edwards lost their respective X-Division and TNA World Champion matches.
While the win marked Myers fourth tag-team title win, this is Bronson’s first-ever championship win in TNA.
Following a successful and eventful March 19 episode of TNA Impact, several new matches and segments were announced for next week’s episode.
With TNA Sacrifice 2026 scheduled for next week, on March 27, the promotion has announced the show lineup for its next episode of Impact and the final one before Sacrifice.
After Moose defeated Brian Myers in an extremely short match, he was announced to face Bear Bronson next week.
TNA World Champion Mike Santana is also scheduled to team up with X-Division Champion Leon Slater and face The System (Cedric Alexander & Eddie Edwards). The rest of the card includes Jeff Hardy in a singles match, Mustafa Ali taking on BDE, and Tessa Blanchard in a multi-women match.
TNA Impact next week’s lineup
Moose vs. Bear Bronson
Mustafa Ali vs. BDE
Jody Threat, Harley Hudson & Myla Grace vs. Victoria Crawford, Mila Moore & Tessa Blanchard
Eddie Edwards & Cedric Alexander vs. Leon Slater & Mike Santana
Mustafa Ali initially wasn’t supposed to be on the WWE Night of Champions 2023 card — but a Saudi government official ended up getting him booked on the show.
While appearing on a live edition of Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Ali detailed how his match against Gunther at the May 2023 event came to be. Ali had been sent over to do media prior to the show and had a conversation with someone who he didn’t know was a high-ranking Saudi official. That person then requested for Vince McMahon to book Ali.
“I was sent to go do media, like public relations for an upcoming event in Saudi Arabia called Night of Champions,” Ali said. “So I go there — I’m not on the show. I’m just going there as token brown guy. So I’m going there, I’m making everyone happy. Just because it’s, you know, you’re always going to relate to someone that looks like you, right? I do these little events. Obviously, very appreciative of the turnout here [at the podcast episode], but the turnout there was insane. They were expecting 500 people. There was like 3,000 people.
“So the guy’s looking at me like, ‘Oh, this Mustafa Ali, maybe he does the show.’ I was like, ‘It’s the Night of Champions, you have to be a champion to be on the show. I’m not a champion.’ And I didn’t realize I was talking to like the president of the GEA, which is the General Entertainment Authority that basically runs the shows in Saudi Arabia. He goes, ‘You leave it to me, I talk to [Vince].’ I go, ‘No, no.’ He goes, ‘No, no, no, I’m going to request that you’re on the show.'”
Ali said he believes McMahon was not happy about someone telling him what to do, which led to the infamous backstage segment on Raw’s go-home show for the event where Brock Lesnar told Ali to “get a life, kid.”
The Saudi General Entertainment Authority is headed by Turki Alalshikh, who is the person responsible for handling the relationship between WWE and Saudi Arabia.
Ali is now with TNA Wrestling after being released by WWE in September 2023.
“The cookies are going to crumble the way it crumbles, right? I know, when I look at WWE, I know that I knocked on every door, I presented every idea, I never said no for the most part,” Ali said on Insight. “And I did good work, man. I’m never going to look in the mirror and feel like, ‘Oh man, I failed…’
“There was nothing else I could have done. I tried everything, comedy, serious, being the little guy, this guy, whatever the hell. You know what I mean? So I walked away with that. And then when Brock said, ‘Go get a life, kid’ — I quite literally did that. I’m the f***ing man now.”
This past week’s TNA Impact was a pretty forgettable show….except for the main event which featured a stipulation you’re not going to see very often.
Apparently, you can buy a casket shaped like a guitar case and TNA got one to use a blowoff match between Elijah and Mustafa Ali.
And what a blowoff it was as TNA showed how to put a guy over in dominant fashion and make him look like a superstar. Though, there are questions of why they chose this particular guy to do it with.
Elsewhere, Indi Hartwell battled Heather by Elegance, Trey Miguel defended the International title against former champion Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo, Jodi Threat faced Tessa Blanchard, and Sinner & Saint returned to take on the new team of Rich Swann & BDE.
Former WWE and current TNA star Mustafa Ali has opened up in detail about re-signing with the promotion recently.
In a recent interview with Rewind Recap Relive, Ali opened up and explained in detail his decision to re-sign with TNA.
“I’m so grateful to be involved in the industry at a time where so many friends, people that I consider family, are flourishing, right? There’s opportunity everywhere, and that’s not meant to kind of like rub it in someone’s face. That’s meant to like motivate those out there that are pursuing a contract or are trying to make pro wrestling, the way that they put food on the table. It’s so possible, man. It takes a lot of work, a lot of grit. It’s very competitive, but the opportunities, to a point, are kind of everywhere. You just got to go and take advantage of that.“
Explaining his “synergy” with TNA, he further continued, “TNA and me specifically, it’s just this synergy. It’s this fit. I get along, really, really well with Carlos [Silva] and the creative department. I’m a very hands-on, opinionated person, I still think I’m a good soldier. I might question the order before I go and do it, but at the end of the day, if my sergeant or if the person above me gives me an order, I follow through on that, so I’ll never knock myself for that.“
The former X-Division Champion believes himself to be a “team player” and that his creative visions lining up with TNA’s also motivated that decision.
“I definitely am a team player. But man, am I opinionated, and that’s welcomed with the creative team and TNA, and with Carlos, I have ideas, I have visions. I want to say like nine times out of 10, you know, they kind of see the vision with me, and it’s not a knock on other places. It’s just that I’ve been able to develop that relationship. That was a big key component for me. I’m very, very blessed to be able to do this for such a long time, where I’m able to provide for my family financially. Selfishly, I was looking to be creatively fulfilled, and I feel like the best chance I had of doing that is with TNA, and I’m so happy.“
While Ali re-signed with the promotion earlier this year in January, the 39-year-old explained that the negotiations began even before the AMC deal was finalized.
“I actually was negotiating this deal before I even knew about the network deal being finalized. You always hear about deals. You always hear, you know, in wrestling, it’s like, I’ll believe it till I see it. So I can, you know, I’m not saying I didn’t believe it, but I definitely was like, we’ll see, you know? So I still kind of decided to stay here with TNA, despite not knowing that the network deal was on the horizon,” he continued. “So it was kind of like a, I re-signed and then a couple of weeks later, oh, we’re on TV as well with AMC. So it was like a nice little cherry on top. But very grateful and appreciative for the opportunity to have here at TNA.”
Elijah and Mustafa Ali are set to continue their rivalry with a stipulation match when TNA comes to Nashville, Tennessee this weekend.
TNA Wrestling has announced that Saturday’s television taping will include a guitar case casket match between Elijah and Ali. The taping is being held at The Pinnacle in Nashville with matches airing on future episodes of TNA Impact on AMC.
Ali is coming off a victory over Elijah at Rebellion, where he used a guitar shot to get the win after interference by his Order 4 faction members Tasha Steelz, Jason Hotch, John Skyler, and Agent 0. A mixed tag team match then aired on Impact last week with Ali & Steelz defeating Elijah & Jada Stone following more involvement by Order 4.
The winner of this upcoming match will be whoever is able to stuff their opponent into a casket that’s shaped like a guitar case.
Both Elijah (then known as Elias) and Ali are former WWE wrestlers. Elijah made his TNA debut in 2025, while Ali first arrived in the promotion in 2024. It was announced last month that Ali has re-signed with TNA as the promotion enters a new era with its TV deal on AMC.
Before Saturday’s TV taping, Nashville will host TNA No Surrender 2026 this Friday night. That show is being broadcast live on TNA+ and includes an eight-man tag match with Order 4 (Ali, Hotch, Skyler & Agent 0) facing Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, Vincent & Dutch.
Mustafa Ali suffered a brutal injury at Saturday’s TNA Genesis and followed it up by showing it on social media.
Ali, with Tasha Steelz, John Skyler, Jason Hotch and Special Agent 0, defeated Elijah in a match lasting a little over nine minutes. The final moments o saw Ali land a hard guitar shot on Elijah’s back to secure the win. However, despite picking up the victory, Ali failed to escape the match scratch-free.
Shortly after winning, Ali shared the image of the brutal injury he suffered during his match, showing his toenail almost uprooted with dried blood all around the nail. Fans can check out the picture here if they choose.
Whether the former X-Division Champion will be out of action and for how long remains to be seen. TNA returns to action this Thursday for another live edition of Thursday Night Impact followed by another TV taping the night afterward.
As the promotion enters a new era, Mustafa Ali has re-upped with TNA Wrestling.
We’re now one week away from TNA Impact debuting on AMC. In an interview with Denise Salcedo, Ali revealed that he has re-signed with the company ahead of the AMC premiere. Ali noted that he put a lot of thought into his decision and chose to re-sign because he was so fulfilled by the work he was doing in TNA.
“Just a few days ago, I officially re-signed with TNA Wrestling. So, yeah, TNA, Mustafa Ali, AMC,” Ali announced. “And I’m very, very happy with that. TNA management, Carlos [Silva], Tommy [Dreamer], everybody top to bottom has just been very supportive. I don’t want to say they see the vision, I bring them this idea. I’ve earned it I feel like, but there’s so much trust from them.”
Ali said his experience in TNA has been fulfilling from both an in-ring and storytelling perspective. He debuted for the company in 2024 after being release by WWE the prior year. Ali has played a heel politician character in TNA, leading a faction called Order 4 with Jason Hotch, John Skyler, Tasha Steelz, and Agent Zero (Bill Collier).
In TNA’s year-end awards for 2025, Ali was recognized with his falls count anywhere bout against Mike Santana from Rebellion winning Match of the Year.
Impact is set to premiere on AMC next Thursday (January 15). The promotion’s Genesis 2026 pay-per-view will then take place on Saturday, January 17. Ali vs. Elijah has been confirmed for the PPV.
Mustafa Ali could be headed to another promotion in 2026.
Fightful Select is reporting that Ali’s TNA contract will expire at the end of 2025 and the 39-year-old is said to be keeping his options open. Fightful also notes that Ali would be “welcome back” in NXT as Shawn Michaels has long been an advocate of his.
Ali was an active member of the NXT roster when he was released from the company in 2023, even though he was scheduled to challenge for the North American title the following week at No Mercy. This was referenced in Ali’s recent program with current North American Champion Ethan Page, which saw Page defend the title against Ali at NXT vs. TNA Showdown.
During an interview with Denise Salcedo earlier this month, Ali said the promo he cut the week before Showdown about having been released before his title match in 2023 was something Shawn Michaels talked him into.
Ali said:
“I thought he was wrong initially and then I went out and as I’m cutting the promo I myself started to feel it and there was this pin drop silence. I think I said something along the lines of ‘My dream was on the horizon but that day Mr. Page, the sun did not rise,’ and you could just hear like everyone felt that was real.”
“So when I came back, I looked at Shawn, I go, ‘You were right.’”
Mustafa Ali addressed his recent return to NXT during an interview with Denise Salcedo.
Ali confronted NXT North American Champion Ethan Page on Tuesday’s show, setting up a title match between the two at NXT vs. TNA Showdown next week. During the segment, Ali mentioned he had earned a shot at the North American title in 2023 but was released from the company before the match could take place.
Ali told Salcedo that he initially wanted to do a version of the promo more in line with his current character, but Shawn Michaels talked him into being more authentic with it.
Ali said:
“It wasn’t that I wasn’t comfortable with it, it’s just that I feel like I’ve said this before and I’m at a stage in my career, especially with TNA, where I feel like I’ve presented this politician, very powerful, very confident individual that kind of condescendingly weaves and snakes his way into the match. So, when I got there, I did meet with Shawn and I kind of pitched a different version of the same promo but what I thought would be more in line with (his current character).”
Michaels later pulled him aside and said he should go with the original plan.
“He pulled me aside with the writer. He goes, ‘I’m telling you, you got to be real on this one. You got to let people know what happened. You got to trust me on this. Start off how you want, but then midway through just take the mask off and look him dead in the eye and tell everybody what happened.’ He’s like, ‘I’m telling you, you got to trust me.'”
Ali continued to say he thought Michaels was wrong up until he was actually delivering the promo and could feel the reaction from the live audience.
“I thought he was wrong initially and then I went out and as I’m cutting the promo I myself started to feel it and there was this pin drop silence. I think I said something along the lines of ‘My dream was on the horizon but that day Mr. Page, the sun did not rise,’ and you could just hear like everyone felt that was real.”
“So when I came back, I looked at Shawn, I go, ‘You were right.'”
Ali’s full interview with Denise Salcedo is available below. His comments about returning to NXT and his promo on Tuesday come in around the 9-minute 27-second mark.
Teams are official and a new title match are set for next week.
The main focus on Tuesday’s show was setting the stage for next week’s Showdown event between NXT and TNA talent, including two NXT vs. TNA Survivor Series-style elimination matches. Additionally, Ethan Page will defend the North American title against TNA’s Mustafa Ali.
NXT GM Ava at the start of the show named Ricky Starks & Jacy Jayne the captains of Team NXT while TNA Director of Authority Santino Marella named new TNA Knockouts Champion Kelani Jordan and Mike Santana the TNA team captains. Two matches were set up to determine members of the NXT teams, with Myles Borne defeating Josh Briggs and Lola Vice defeating Fallon Henley.
In the final segment, the teams were officially named. For the men, Starks, Borne, Trick Williams, and Je’Von Evans of NXT will take on Santana, Frankie Kazarian, Moose, and Leon Slater of TNA. For the women, Jayne, Vice, Sol Ruca, and Jaida Parker of NXT will take on Jordan, The IInspiration (Cassie Lee and Jessie McKay), and Mara Sade (the former Jakara Jackson) of TNA.
The final moments of the show inevitably broke out into yet another interpromotional brawl as Shawn Michaels appeared in front of the crowd smiling, watching the chaos unfold.
A new match was set up on Tuesday when Mustafa Ali made his first appearance in NXT since his release from WWE in 2023. He told Page about the time that he had earned a North American title match, only to get released nine days before the match took place at NXT No Mercy 2023. He told Page he had talked to Ava and would see him next week. The segment ended in a brief brawl, with Ali dropkicking Page out of the ring.
TNA vs. NXT Survivor Series men’s match: Team NXT (Ricky Starks, Trick Williams, Myles Borne, and Je’Von Evans) vs. Team TNA (Mike Santana, Frankie Kazarian, Moose, and Leon Slater)
TNA vs. NXT Survivor Series women’s match: Team NXT (Jacy Jayne, Sol Ruca, Jaida Parker, and Lola Vice) vs. Team TNA (Kelani Jordan, The IInspiration, and Mara Sade)
Title for title: NXT Tag Team Champions Darkstate vs. TNA Tag Team Champions The Hardys
NXT North American title: Ethan Page defends against Mustafa Ali
For the first time in a long time, TNA Impact felt like a pro wrestling show and not a TV show about pro wrestling.
That was most true in the excellent Mustafa Ali vs. Joe Hendry main event, but there was also a fun tag match pitting Heather & M by Elegance against Lei Ying Lee & Xia Brookside, and a good promo segment setting up major changes in Fir$t Cla$$. Oh, and they did a fine job building and promoting the big matches for the Emergence app special on Friday, August 15.
We’ll cover all of that, then review two more big matches from New Japan’s G1 Climax: Yuya Uemura vs. Ryohei Oiwa and David Finlay vs. Yota Tsuji. Come join the fun on the Big Vinny V Show!
Mustafa Ali is taking the blame for his rough landing at TNA Slammiversary last night.
During his match against Cedric Alexander at Sunday’s pay-per-view, there was a scary moment where Ali flew through the middle ropes for a dive to the outside. He hit the top of Alexander and almost flew over him entirely before taking a scary head-first landing onto the floor. A group of Ali’s Secret Service members were there but did not catch him. That has drawn criticism from fans, but Ali says no one is at fault but himself.
“Appreciate everyone’s concern. Unfortunately, I have to pull the curtain back here because the talent ringside was absolutely not responsible for that scary fall in any way and they are getting all the blame.” Ali tweeted this morning. “They did exactly what they were instructed to do. I tried to do a variation of a dive and simply slipped off my opponent. No one to blame but me.”
Ali was able to finish the match and get the victory over Alexander. And despite how scary the spot looked, Ali says he’s “all good.”
“I am all good,” he wrote. See ya on #TNAiMPACT”
After being released by WWE in 2023, Ali debuted for TNA in 2024 and is signed to a contract with the promotion. He plays a heel politician character, leading a faction called Order 4 with Jason Hotch, John Skyler & Tasha Steelz.
TNA’s next event following Slammiversary is a live episode of Impact in Kingston, Rhode Island this Thursday. The promotion will also hold TV tapings there on Friday.
A long-standing grudge will be settled at TNA Rebellion in a new match announced for the show.
Mustafa Ali will face Mike Santana at the Sunday, April 27 Rebellion pay-per-view in a rematch from Sacrifice where Ali used underhanded tactics to claim the victory.
Ali vs. Santana is one of six matches currently set for the April 27 pay-per-view, which will take place in a quick turnaround from the April 17 Unbreakable TNA Plus special.
The TNA Rebellion card is listed below:
TNA Rebellion, Sunday, April 27 on pay-per-view —
TNA World Champion Joe Hendry defends against Frankie Kazarian and Ethan Page in a triple threat
TNA Knockouts World Champion Masha Slamovich defends against Tessa Blanchard
TNA Tag Team Champions Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy defend against Nic Nemeth and Ryan Nemeth
Ultimate X match: X-Division Champion Moose defends vs. El Hijo del Vikingo, Matt Cardona, Leon Slater, KC Navarro and one wrestler TBA
Elijah vs. TBA
WWE NXT’s Fatal Influence (Fallon Henley, Jacy Jayne and Jazmyn Nyx) vs. Rosemary, Xia Brookside and Lei Ying Lee
