Tag: ilja dragunov

Who should face Drew McIntyre at WWE Clash in Italy? | Opinion 

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

On the road to next weekend’s WWE Clash in Italy PLE, Drew McIntyre is advertised for both tonight’s and next week’s WWE SmackDown.

It will be his first televised appearance since his unsanctioned WrestleMania 42 match loss to Jacob Fatu after which have been tumultuous changes in storyline dynamics and rising talents in his absence. 

So what’s next for the former champion? Here’s a few ideas for his direction ahead of next weekend’s big event in Turin.

Ilja Dragunov

Dragunov’s pursuit of the United States title seems to be on hold after Trick Williams’ win at WrestleMania, and Sami Zayn still holding on to hope for another rematch. 

While that develops, Dragunov could pick a feud with McIntyre. Going up against an established name like McIntyre could offer him a fresh rivalry outside of the championship scene. McIntyre’s frustration following the loss to Fatu could create a natural conflict for Dragunov’s relentlessness. 

Even if the rivalry does not have long-term storytelling, one match is enough to appeal to fans. Both men are known for their intense matches making their rivalry a perfect fit for a PLE like Clash in Italy.

Trick Williams

With Williams becoming a breakout star on the main roster in McIntyre’s absence, a rivalry between the two is going to come at some point.

Within six months of his SmackDown debut, Williams not only became a fan favorite, but he competed in his first WrestleMania match and won the United States title as referenced above. That in itself could irk McIntyre to call him out, being unsupportive of his rise to stardom in his time away.

It would create the classic veteran vs. rising star dynamic, enabling Williams to gain further credibility by facing and possibly defending the title against McIntyre. 

Additionally, McIntyre’s persona, along with Williams’ charisma and confidence amid conflicting fan support, could create some fun tension for a rivalry. 

Ricky Saints 

Saints competed in his SmackDown debut against undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. Despite their history dating back to their AEW tenure, Saints’ in-ring capability captured the WWE audience’s attention. 

Saints already has the self-assured, verbally sharp and main character energy persona. Meanwhile, McIntyre is brutal, hardened and emotionally driven. He could call out Saints for embodying what WWE values like his charisma. This would provoke a retaliation from Saints, concluding in a verbal confrontation that could lead to a match next weekend.

Matt Cardona 

A similarity between Cardona and McIntyre is that both men reinvented themselves following their WWE exits in early years of their careers.

McIntyre rebuilt himself and become World Champion worthy while Cardona transitioned from a comedy centric undercard talent to self-made independent wrestler. This would lay the foundation for a philosophical clash.

Ever since his return, Cardona has not been featured in a dominant rivalry. He attempted to influence Randy Orton’s decisions during his Rhodes feud for WrestleMania but that did not end well. 

He has lacked a defining feud and storyline upon his return, and a match with McIntyre could reverse the situation, providing Cardona with the platform to showcase that his accomplishments outside of WWE were validated and relevant.

Here’s who we want to see answer Oba Femi’s future open challenges | Opinion 

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

The Oba Femi open challenge series officially began on Monday’s WWE Raw with the first challenger — Otis — getting a viral forearm en route to a loss to “The Ruler.”

It was Otis’ first singles match on Raw since May 2025 and a rematch from their August 2024 clash in NXT for the NXT North American title.

With the series underway, here’s a few other wrestlers who could step in the ring with Femi on the upcoming editions of Raw.

Ilja Dragunov

Even after having one on-screen interaction, Dragunov and Femi never squared off in NXT despite being notable names on the brand.

Before WrestleMania 42, Dragunov was teasing a pursuit of the United States Championship, a title he lost to Carmelo Hayes in December. He was initially hesitant because he claimed wanting to go into the title match with a clear mind, avoiding all the mental blocks and confidence issues he said he was facing. 

Despite being on SmackDown, Dragunov could cross over to Raw to confront Femi as WWE has done in the past with their rosters.

Ivar 

During his reign as NXT North American Champion, Femi faced talents from the main roster, too. Ivar was one of them as he challenge Femi at NXT Spring Breakin’ on April 30, 2024.

On the February 2 Raw, Femi singlehandedly overpowered The War Raiders. Although Ivar has been competing solely in AAA the past couple of months, he could stop by Raw to seek redemption against Femi. 

Royce Keys

After debuting at the Royal Rumble, Keys finally competed in his first SmackDown singles match last month against Berto. 

With Femi being an unstoppable force in the ring, WWE could pit him against Keys in a showdown that could possibly escalate into a long term feud later. Perhaps Keys crosses over to Raw at some point before a big PLE to put that into motion, helping elevate Keys in the process.

Omos

Omos and Femi have stepped inside the ring once before, facing each other at an NXT house show in October 2025. Omos instigated the match after a brief interaction on one of the shows and stated that there could only be one Nigerian giant.

Their rivalry garnered a huge amount of attention on social media. That could be magnified if the two giants collide on WWE TV for the world to see and prove which one of the two is better in the ring. Additionally, it would also be an ideal pathway to bring back Omos to televised matches on the main roster which he hasn’t done in a very, very long time.

Liv Morgan, Jacob Fatu and more WWE stars discuss impact of training at The Dungeon 

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Liv Morgan and other WWE stars shared their experiences and learnings at The Dungeon 2.0 owned by Natalya and TJ Wilson. 

Natalya shared a video on X featuring training sessions at The Dungeon. 

“My grandfather built The Dungeon on heart and grit and finding out who could get knocked down and get back up. I love being able to carry forward what he started with a new generation.” tweeted Natalya. 

In the video, Liv Morgan, Ilja Dragunov, Jacob Fatu and B-Fab shared their experiences training at the center and how it has altered and influenced their wrestling styles. 

Morgan: “I feel like when I started coming, that’s when I really noticed improvements in my wrestling and my performances. You know, just practicing something gives you the confidence that you’re doing better, even if you’re not improving yet. You know what I mean? So just me coming here every single week and spending three hours, it’s like old school sh*t. You just get down to work.”

Dragunov: “First of all, the dungeon has a very big place in my heart because after my ACL tear, I definitely was looking out for a place where I can prepare myself for my comeback, and I picked The Dungeon for it because i have a lot of respect for what TJ and Nattie are putting into the business.”

Fatu: “TJ’s just always boosting me up, always just teaching me the right things, but also since Natalya, man, as soon as I’m up in there, she ain’t giving me the superstar treatment or she ain’t giving me none of that just because I’m on TV. She actually pushes me. It’s something that I need.” 

B-Fab: “Being able to be here and just work on stuff, work on stuff that I’m working on, try new stuff, like just be able to just open myself up, make the ring my canvas, and just paint whatever I want to paint, as well as getting, you know, a good foundation built in, being able to remember things, so many great things we get from coming to the Dungeon.”

Over the years, The Dungeon has had several wrestlers across promotions to hone their in-ring skills. Last year, John Cena visited the training camp to impart wisdom about the industry and knowledge he picked up during his wrestling career.

Natalya has often emphasized the Dungeon is not just another wrestling school but rather her and Wilson’s ‘love letter to wrestling’.

U.S. title defense, Damian Priest & Rhea Ripley tag match set for next WWE SmackDown

Posted on by Shounak Chakrabarti

After weeks of teasing, Ilja Dragunov will finally face Tommaso Ciampa on next week’s WWE SmackDown with the United States title on the line.

Since defeating Sami Zayn for the gold a couple of months ago, Dragunov has been hosting weekly open challenges. However, Ciampa has never been able to compete for the title.

During Dragunov’s title match against Carmelo Hayes on Friday, Ciampa interfered and cost Hayes the match. Frustrated by the controversial title retention, Dragunov later appeared in a backstage segment and requested that General Manager Nick Aldis put him against Ciampa in a championship match

Earlier in the night, Damian Priest also challenged longtime foe Aleister Black to a mixed tag team match next week as he and Rhea Ripley will reunite the Terror Twins against Black and Zelina Vega.

Ripley and Priest last teamed together on September 29 edition against Karrion Kross & Scarlett.

WWE SmackDown lineup | Friday, December 12 | Wilkes-Barre, PA

  • Rhea Ripley & Damian Priest vs. Aleister Black & Zelina Vega
  • WWE United States Champion Ilja Dragunov defends against Tommaso Ciampa

Nathan Frazer shares statement after match vs. Ilja Dragunov on WWE SmackDown

Posted on by Ian Carey

Nathan Frazer has released a statement following his match against Ilja Dragunov on WWE SmackDown.

Dragunov successfully defended his United States Championship against Frazer on Friday’s show after Frazer answered his open challenge.

Frazer released a statement about the match on Saturday, writing:

“Me and Ilja Dragunov had a match back on NXT in 2023… it left a really bitter taste in my mouth. Bell to bell, it barely lasted 5 minutes. Last night, I got that rematch I’d been dying to have for the past two years. We went to war for the United States Championship on Smackdown. I didn’t get the win, but it really felt like vindication for that night.”

Their singles match on SmackDown was the third between the two. The first took place on the NXT UK brand, when Dragunov successfully defended the NXT United Kingdom Championship against Frazer on the March 3, 2022, taping in London. Their second meeting was the five-minute bout Frazer referenced in his statement, from the November 28, 2023, taping in Orlando.

Friday was Dragunov’s second defense of the U.S. title, after defeating Aleister Black on last week’s episode. Following the bout, Tommaso Ciampa, who had also tried to answer Dragunov’s open challenge, attacked Frazer from behind. Axiom and Johnny Gargano then ran out, leading to a brawl.

Frazer’s statement is below:

US title open challenge set for WWE SmackDown

Posted on by Joseph Currier

United States Champion Ilja Dragunov will be making another title defense on WWE SmackDown tonight.

Ahead of the show, Dragunov confirmed on social media that he’s issuing another open challenge for his belt tonight. His first open challenge took place last week with Dragunov retaining against Aleister Black. Tonight’s opponent has not been named yet.

“This title is a legacy and the open challenge is my duty,” Dragunov wrote. “Who wants to step up tonight?”

Making his long-awaited return, Dragunov defeated Sami Zayn two weeks ago to become the new United States Champion. It was Dragunov’s first match since tearing his ACL more than a year ago. As champion, Dragunov is continuing the open challenge series that was a weekly feature of Zayn’s reign.

Zayn reflected on his U.S. title reign in a tweet yesterday, calling it one of his favorite things he’s ever done in WWE.

Salt Lake City, Utah is hosting SmackDown tonight with the show being held at the Delta Center on Halloween night.

WWE SmackDown (Friday, October 31) —

  • Cody Rhodes & Drew McIntyre contract signing
  • Jade Cargill speaks
  • Carmelo Hayes vs. Kit Wilson
  • Alexa Bliss vs. Nia Jax
  • Ilja Dragunov United States Championship open challenge

New United States Champion crowned on WWE SmackDown

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Ilja Dragunov is the new United States Champion.

Dragunov made a surprise return on Friday’s SmackDown, challenging Sami Zayn as he continued his open challenge. The finish had Zayn going for the helluva kick when Solo Sikoa was seen in the entranceway smirking, causing a distraction. Dragunov eventually connected with torpedo Moscow then finished with the h-bomb to win the Untied States Championship for the first time.

After the match, Sikoa and the rest of the MFTs emerged and laid out both men. Rey Fenix, who was attacked earlier in the night by the group, came out to help but the numbers were too much. Sikoa started to cut a promo when suddenly the lights went out and The Wyatt Sicks made their entrance, appearing on the ring apron. After a staredown, Sikoa’s group backed off as the segment ended.

Dragunov had been out of action for over a year, tearing his ACL in a match against Gunther back in September of 2024. In the hours before SmackDown went on air, it was reported that Dragunov had been seen backstage training in the ring wearing a knee brace, which he also wore during Friday’s match.

Report: Injured wrestler seen backstage ahead of WWE SmackDown

Posted on by Bryan Rose

A wrestler that has been out of action for quite a while has been seen backstage ahead of SmackDown.

PWInsider reported on Friday that Ilja Dragunov is backstage at tonight’s show in San Jose, California. It was said that he was working out in the ring and was wearing a knee brace. He has been out of action since September of 2024, last wrestling Gunther for the World Heavyweight title at a house show in Columbus, Georgia. During that match, Dragunov tore his ACL, requiring surgery. Footage of the match was shown on the following Raw, with Joe Tessitore at the time saying he would be out of action for 6-9 months.

Dragunov was signed to WWE in 2019 and after a stint in NXT UK, made his mark on the main NXT brand, winning the NXT Championship. After losing the title to Trick Williams, he was called up to Raw during the 2024 WWE Draft. Prior to his injury, he had been involved in a feud with Bron Breakker over the Intercontinental title, a championship that Breakker held at the time.

Ilja Dragunov sidelined with torn ACL

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Ilja Dragunov is out of action.

During Monday’s Raw, it was announced that Dragunov tore his ACL during a house show match this weekend in Columbus, Georgia, where he lost to Gunther in a match that had been for the World Heavyweight Championship. Joe Tessitore on commentary said Dragunov is now expected to be out 6-9 months.

Dragunov was called to the main roster back in April during the WWE Draft. Since then, he’s been involved in feuds revolving around Bron Breakker and the Intercontinental title. He defeated Dragon Lee and Dominik Mysterio earlier this month to advance to a fatal four-way match to determine Breakker’s next challenger. Jey Uso ended up winning that match and defeated Breakker to win the Intercontinental title on last week’s Raw.

Signing with the WWE in 2019, Dragunov has spent much of his WWE tenure in developmental, first as part of the NXT UK brand. When that brand folded in 2022, he jumped over to NXT, where he became NXT Champion. In one of his final matches on NXT, he lost the title to Trick Williams.

Ilja Dragunov & Carmelo Hayes both eliminated in first-ever WWE Speed draw

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Former NXT Champions Ilja Dragunov and Carmelo Hayes renewed their rivalry on this week’s episode of WWE Speed.

In the first-ever time limit draw to take place on the show, Dragunov and Hayes wrestled for the full three minutes without a winner being decided. Per the rules, Dragunov and Hayes are both eliminated from the WWE Speed Championship number one contender’s tournament. Baron Corbin earns a bye and will challenge Andrade for the WWE Speed title on the episode that airs on X/Twitter next Wednesday (July 24).

Dragunov vs. Hayes was taped in Worcester, Massachusetts before WWE SmackDown last Friday. Dragunov had the advantage when the three-minute time limit expired. After the match, Hayes kicked him and they needed to be kept apart by officials.

WWE uploaded a post-match promo where Dragunov said he wasn’t all that surprised by the draw, because he knows Hayes is someone who can push him to the limit. The two feuded over the NXT Championship last year in a series of matches against each other.

Hayes also cut a promo saying he knows this won’t be the last time he and Dragunov wrestle.

In the 2024 WWE Draft, Dragunov and Hayes were both called up to the main roster. Dragunov is involved in a program with Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn and Bron Breakker on Raw. Hayes is on SmackDown and recently took part in the men’s Money in the Bank ladder match.

Intercontinental title match announced for WWE Raw

Posted on by Joseph Currier

The Intercontinental title will be on the line when WWE Raw takes place from Dayton, Ohio this Monday.

Ilja Dragunov will challenge Sami Zayn for the championship on the Monday, July 15 episode of Raw. The matchup was announced on Saturday afternoon via a video WWE posted with Raw General Manager Adam Pearce.

At Money in the Bank last weekend, Zayn managed to retain his Intercontinental title against Bron Breakker. Dave Meltzer reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that a Zayn vs. Breakker rematch was listed internally for next month’s SummerSlam card, though Meltzer noted that it’s possible Dragunov is added to make it a triple threat given that he’s become part of the Zayn/Breakker program.

Dragunov came to Zayn’s defense when Breakker attacked him on Raw this past Monday. Later in the episode, Zayn tried to return the favor after a Dragunov vs. Breakker match ended in a disqualification. Breakker left both Dragunov and Zayn laying.

Here’s the updated lineup for Monday’s Raw:

  • World Heavyweight Champion Damian Priest & Gunther go face-to-face
  • Drew McIntyre returns
  • Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn defends against Ilja Dragunov
  • Bronson Reed vs. Sheamus
  • Rhea Ripley opens the show

Chad Gable removed from WWE Money in the Bank qualifying match

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Chad Gable is no longer set to compete in a WWE Money in the Bank qualifying match next week.

A triple threat match between Gable, Braun Strowman, and Bronson Reed had been announced for Raw next Monday, but Ilja Dragunov is taking Gable’s place in the qualifier. The change was announced via a graphic that was shown on the latest episode of WWE Main Event. It comes after Gable was the victim of an attack by the Wyatt Sicks.

The new faction debuted at the end of Raw earlier this week. As part of their introduction, a bloody Gable was shown backstage in Gorilla position after being decimated by the Wyatt Sicks.

Uncle Howdy, Erick Rowan, Nikki Cross, Dexter Lumis, and Joe Gacy have been confirmed as members of the Wyatt Sicks. Led by his brother Taylor (Bo Dallas/Uncle Howdy), the group is a tribute to the late Windham Rotunda (Bray Wyatt).

Before the attack, Gable lost to Strowman in a singles match on Raw. Alpha Academy then imploded — seemingly for good — with Otis, Maxxine Dupri, and Akira Tozawa leaving Gable.

Gable recently signed a new WWE contract. He lost to Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn at Clash at the Castle last weekend.

Jey Uso and IYO SKY have already qualified for this year’s respective Money in the Bank ladder matches. The event is taking place in Toronto on Saturday, July 6.

The updated card for next Monday’s Raw is listed below:

WWE Raw (Monday, June 24) —

  • Men’s Money in the Bank qualifying match: Braun Strowman vs. Bronson Reed vs. Ilja Dragunov
  • Women’s Money in the Bank qualifying match: Lyra Valkyria vs. Shayna Baszler vs. Kairi Sane

WWE Raw video highlights: Gunther vs. Sheamus, Dragunov vs. Ricochet, more

Posted on by Joseph Currier
The start of WWE’s King & Queen of the Ring tournaments was the focus of last night’s Raw.

On the show, six tournament matches took place. Gunther, Ilja Dragunov, Jey Uso, IYO SKY, Lyra Valkyria, and Zoey Stark all advanced to the quarterfinals. The remaining first-round matches on the Raw side of the bracket (Kofi Kingston vs. Rey Mysterio and Zelina Vega vs. Shayna Baszler) will take place at WWE house shows this weekend.

Gunther and Sheamus renewed their rivalry with another banger in last night’s main event. With his victory, Gunther now has a 3-0 record against Sheamus in singles matches. He tapped Sheamus out with a half-crab after Ludwig Kaiser had interfered and attacked Sheamus’ knee.

Sheamus shared a photo of his beat-up chest after the match and said there won’t be a fourth match between him and Gunther.

Dragunov and Valkyria, both former NXT champions, won their matches after being called up in the WWE Draft.

There were a couple of changes to the planned lineup for last night. Drew McIntyre and Asuka were both pulled from their scheduled tournament matches due to injury. Uso replaced McIntyre and defeated Finn Balor. Dakota Kai filled in for her Damage CTRL stablemate Asuka in a losing effort against Valkyria.

SmackDown’s King & Queen of the Ring matches begin this Friday night. The tournaments will culminate at WWE King & Queen of the Ring in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, May 25.

More coverage from last night —

WWE Raw video highlights —

Damian Priest apologizes to Judgment Day for losing his cool at Backlash

King of the Ring first-round match: Jey Uso vs. Finn Balor

CM Punk is the unforgiving consequences to Drew McIntyre’s actions

Queen of the Ring first-round match: Natalya vs. IYO SKY

King of the Ring first-round match: Ricochet vs. Ilja Dragunov

Queen of the Ring first-round match: Ivy Nile vs. Zoey Stark

R-Truth tries to set up a World Tag Team title defense against UConn basketball

Sami Zayn disrupts Bronson Reed vs. Chad Gable

Becky Lynch vs. Liv Morgan title match official for WWE King & Queen of the Ring

Queen of the Ring first-round match: Lyra Valkyria vs. Dakota Kai

King of the Ring first-round match: Sheamus vs. Gunther

Raw fallout: CM Punk says Drew McIntyre picked a fight he can’t win

Raw fallout: Jey got emotional seeing the Backlash crowd bring back the Fireflies

Raw fallout: Ilja Dragunov wants to fight the best

Raw Talk: Lyra Valkyria, Zoey Stark & Shayna Baszler, The LWO appear

Ilja Dragunov, Dijak, Lyra Valkyria among NXT stars called up in WWE Draft

Posted on by Bryan Rose

More NXT stars were called up during the second night of the WWE Draft.

During Raw, it was announced that Ilja Dragunov and Lyra Valkyria would be heading to Raw, while Blair Davenport will now be a part of the SmackDown brand. On social media, Dijak was announced as the newest member of the Raw roster.

On social media, NXT General Manager Ava shared a picture of her and Shawn Michaels posing with people who had been called up in the 2024 WWE Draft.

https://twitter.com/avawwe_/status/1785156936565997892

SmackDown this past Friday had Carmelo Hayes and Baron Corbin were drafted to SmackDown, while Kiana James was called up to Raw. Cody Rhodes defeated Hayes in the main event.

Dragunov is a former NXT Champion, losing the title to Trick Williams on last week’s NXT, the first night of Spring Breakin’. Valkyria is a former NXT Women’s Champion, having lost the title recently to Roxanne Perez at NXT Stand & Deliver during WrestleMania weekend.

This will be Dijak’s second run on the main roster after first being called up as part of the group Retribution in 2020 under the name T-Bar. After the group disbanded, he remained on the main roster until 2022, when he returned to NXT under the name Dijak.

Gunther: Ilja Dragunov would be ‘a better enemy than friend’ on WWE main roster

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Gunther thinks Ilja Dragunov would be a better enemy than a friend on the WWE main roster.

It’s expected that Dragunov will be called up to either Raw or SmackDown when night two of the 2024 WWE Draft takes place this Monday. In an interview with Gorilla Position on WWE’s tour of the United Kingdom last week, Gunther praised Dragunov as someone who will do great in WWE moving forward:

I think somebody that will do great going forward is Ilja. I think that’s somebody that is kind of like waiting to explode right now. He just wrestled on Raw. The draft is coming up, so let’s see where that heads. But I think he would be the guy that I would single out right now that performs at a stage that he’s – I would say almost too advanced for right now.

Gunther told Gorilla Position that he thinks it would be better if Dragunov remains a rival on the WWE main roster instead of joining him in Imperium. The two have had stellar matches against each other in NXT, NXT UK, and on the indies.

I think Ilja is definitely a better enemy than a friend. And yeah, it has to come down to that. Ilja is one of us in the terms of like – [Ludwig] Kaiser, Ilja, and I, we all wrestled each other years back. So I naturally want him to be where I am. And I think he’s somebody that brings out the best in me and I’m someone that brings out the best in him. But I think before that can happen, he has his own way to go, wherever he ends up. And further down the line, I think it’s a no-brainer that this has to happen a few times.

At WrestleMania 40 earlier this month, Gunther lost the Intercontinental title to Sami Zayn. Gunther’s 666-day reign as champion is the longest in the history of the IC title.

Dragunov also recently lost championship gold. In advance of his call-up, Dragunov dropped the NXT Championship to Trick Williams this past Tuesday.

Imperium’s Gunther & Ludwig Kaiser are eligible to be selected on night two of the WWE Draft this Monday.

Giovanni Vinci was kicked out of Imperium on the most recent episode of Raw. Also on the show, Gunther declared that he’ll be competing in this year’s King of the Ring tournament.