Mustafa Ali def. Buddy Murphy
In the first round of the WWE Cruiserweight Championship Tournament, NXT Superstar Buddy Murphy impressed in his first cruiserweight contest against Ariya Daivari. Despite Mustafa Ali claiming victory against Gentleman Jack Gallagher, the British Superstar inflicted an extraordinary amount of punishment on the Chicago native. Showing his dedication and conditioning, Murphy weighed in at 197 pounds before his battle with Ali.
Brimming with confidence, Murphy used his size and strength advantage to force Ali to recalibrate his strategy. Growing frustrated with the Australian Superstar, Ali attempted to outmaneuver his opponent, but continued to struggle against Murphy’s speed and physical advantage.
Fed up with Murphy’s taunting, Ali delivered a hard-hitting kick to the face before the two exchanged harsh words in the center of the ring. As the jawing continued, Murphy responded with a massive clothesline, allowing him to take control of the contest and start to methodically dismantle Ali.
However, if the Chicago native proved anything against Gentleman Jack Gallagher, it’s that he is incredibly resilient. Keeping Murphy at bay, Ali turned the table with an incredible 450 Splash onto his opponent’s arm. Wasting little time, Ali capitalized by targeting Murphy’s arm.
Regaining control by dropping Ali to the outside, Murphy battled through the pain to sail over the top rope. Despite the advantage, Murphy could not secure a victory, and Ali struck back, nearly claiming the win following a reverse hurricanrana and a tornado DDT.
As Ali dished out punishment, a defiant Daredevil from Down Under called for more, and the two exchanged blows. Unfortunately for Murphy, his injured arm became a major detriment, as he couldn’t execute Murphy’s Law or maintain a pin. Taking advantage of the injury, Ali rolled up his opponent and scored the victory to advance to the semifinals.
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