A segment was reportedly cut from the May 23rd edition of Monday Night Raw due to time constraints.
The May 23rd episode of Monday Night Raw wasn’t short on action, but according to a report from Fightful Select, it was meant to feature a segment to continue the feud between Mustafa Ali and United States Champion Theory. The report states that time constraints were the reason for the segment being cut, and that no other plans were made to feature Ali on the show. The segment did not appear on the run sheet handed out at 7:25 EDT, so it appears the change was made before then.
There was talk of Theory being involved in the beatdown on Cody Rhodes after Rhodes’ match with The Miz, but that didn’t end up happening. According to Fightful Select, there are still plans in place to continue to feud between Mustafa Ali and The Miz going forward on Raw.
Tension began between Mustafa Ali and the United States Champion when Ali returned to Raw on April 25th, interrupting a MizTV segment that featured Theory as the guest. Prior to his return, Ali hadn’t been seen on WWE television since being defeated by Drew McIntyre on SmackDown in October 2021.
Ali spoke to the United States Champion, saying that he hoped Theory would put his title on the line in an open challenge, and that he wanted to answer that open challenge tonight. However, Theory refused to put the title on the line against the returning star, but instead texted Vince McMahon and got his mentor to approve a match between Mustafa Ali and the Miz.
Miz didn’t look happy about this turn of events, but he did face Ali in one on one competition. Despite being treated as an underdog on commentary, Ali was able to defeat the Miz, his first victory since he and Mansoor defeated Lucha House Party on Main Event on August 30th, 2021.
However, before he had a chance to properly celebrate his victory, Ali was attacked by Tommaso Ciampa at the top of the ramp.
Theory has reigned as United States Champion since defeating Finn Balor on April 18th.