Mustafa Ali has been a member of the WWE Universe since all the way back in 2016, when he signed with the company after a 12-year run on the indies.

Since arriving in The Fed, the former Prince has wrestled 342 matches, losing 185 of them, and has held a championship belt exactly zero times despite wrestling for one title or another in a WWE ring on 72 occasions, according to Cagematch.

So naturally, with his ticket punched to Night of Champions, his first Premium Live Event appearance since Hell in a Cell 2022, Ali isn't taking his opportunity to wrestle for Gunther's Intercontinental Championship for granted. No, standing in front of an audience who looked like him and have similar names to his wrestling moniker – his birth name is actually Adeel Alam – Ali declared at the Backlash press conference that he's ready to prove that he belongs in front of a white-hot crowd cheering him on.

“As-Salam-Alaykum Jeddah! Tomorrow night I have an amazing opportunity. I have an opportunity to do something great, I have the opportunity to become a champion, I have the opportunity to prove that I belong,” Ali declared to the Jeddah crowd.

“Tomorrow night at Night of Champions, I will be in the ring with The Ring General, but I’m going to look out and see people who look just like me. I’m going to see people who have a name just like mine. And look at me when I say this to you Gunther, I’m going to prove to them that it doesn’t matter what your name is, it doesn’t matter where you’re from, all that matters is what’s in your heart.”

Asked by Byron Saxton how he's going to overcome Gunther, who is widely viewed as the heavy favorite to win the belt, Ali fired back in a way as brave as it is brazen.

“Byron, I’m sorry, I have no idea what you just said, a room full of Jeddah people are chanting my name, Ali noted. I’m assuming the question you’re asking is how can I overcome him, Gunther, the Intercontinental Champion. I’ll answer your question with a question of my own; how is he going to respond when all of Saudi Arabia has my back?”

Does Ali have a reason to be excited heading into Night of Champions? In a word, yes; for Superstars like Ali, opportunities to wrestle for championships on “Premium Live Events” don't come along all that often, and having a chance to showcase his efforts in front of a massive audience without having to worry about commercial breaks should free up the high-flyer to turn in one of his best efforts in a wrestling ring ever. Win, lose, or draw; this is Ali's chance to prove he belongs; as long as Paul ‘Triple H” Levesque doesn't give him the Kofi Kingston versus Brock Lesnar treatment, he has all of the goods to make the most of that opportunity.

Mustafa Ali names his dream opponent after Night of Champions.

Though Mustafa Ali has a pretty big challenge ahead of him at Night of Champions, as Gunther hasn't lost a singles match on the WWE main roster, the fine folks at Talk 100.3 decided to ask “The Heart Of 205 Live” if he has any dream opponents from after his Intercontinental Championship challenge has been decided one way or another. Unsurprisingly, Ali does have a name in mind, and it's definitely not someone you would expect.

“Everyone wants to face bitter rival or settle the score. I'm up for friendly competition,” Ali said via Fightful. “There is a fellow Chicagoan in the house today. Some people say he's more charismatic than me, better dressed than me, better looking than me. I'd like to settle the score, have a little competition with Montez Ford. I like Angelo. It's Montez Ford that I have an issue with [laughs]. Angelo, we're cool. I would love to get in the ring with Montez. He's an incredible athlete, the most charismatic guy we have on the roster. Mustafa and Montez would tear it up.”

Technically, Ali has shared the ring with Ford once before, as he lost a match to the Street Profits on an NXT Live show in 2017 while tagging with current AEW member Ari Daivari. Still, it would be fun to see the duo in the ring together some six years later, as the charisma levels would be off the charts. Whether it's for the Intercontinental Championship or simply for the love of the game, an Ali-Ford has the makings of a very fun contest; the sort of contest that gets replayed on the house show circuit night after night.