Mustafa Ali returns to WWE TV on Raw, faces The Miz

Mustafa Ali returned to Raw tonight, confronting The Miz and Austin Theory.

Miz was talking to Theory on Miz TV when Ali interrupted. After The Miz made a crack asking if Ali still worked in WWE, Ali said he was talking to official Adam Pearce when he saw that Theory would be on Miz TV and wanted to challenge Theory to a United States title match. After Theory rejected the challenge, Ali said Theory was running away from a fight like The Miz. A match was eventually made between Ali and Miz, with Miz telling Ali that after their match, Ali would wish that he would have gotten his walking papers.

The two proceeded to have their match, with Ali getting the win after reversing a figure four attempt into a roll-up. As he was walking to the back, however, he was attacked and laid out by Tommaso Ciampa.

Ali’s return to television tonight follows a report from Fightful Select on Sunday that a return to television was being discussed for Ali. He had requested his release from WWE back in January after Ali reportedly had an argument with Vince McMahon over the direction of his character. The release was not granted. He had not been on television since the October 29 edition of SmackDown.