Match That Changed Ilja Dragunov’s Career In WWE

“Cream always rises to the top,” say the Anglo-Saxons. And it was a matter of time before Ilja Dragunov was in vogue within WWE. He hasn’t even left the realm of NXT yet.

Intensity, that factor that well channelled makes a difference, is something that is missing within WWE. Few fighters manage to sell blows as well as Dragunov, elevate their suffering to the category of art and, previously, make a promo with which you feel expectation for it.

Little by little, his work is rewarded in NXT, and yesterday, after defeating Wes Lee, Dragunov managed to position himself as Carmelo Hayes’ challenger in the No Mercy special on September 30. If the Muscovite is victorious, he will be the only fighter who has held the NXT Championship and the NXT UK Championship.

► Gunther, Ilja Dragunov’s catalyst

And the impact that Dragunov is having is palpable in how the most notable podcasts in the industry request his presence, as was the case with Busted Open Radio this week. There, the “Unbesiegbar” talks about his two duels against Gunther (then WALTER) and considers the Austrian his best rival, along with whom, according to him, he had his most important fight so far in WWE.

“Gunther, it truly takes a person like him to bring out the best in me. Because I give my best when I go through difficulties. When I go through difficulties, I go through them in a big way, going through suffering and pain and thus I have the opportunity to rise from my ashes like a phoenix. The fight at TakeOver 36 was the one with which I began to leave my mark on WWE.”

Although their first duel under the McMahonlandia lights, during the episode of NXT UK on October 29, 2020, was more brutal and unique (because it took place in front of empty BT Sports Studios due to pandemic restrictions), the rematch at NXT TakeOver 36 It can be considered superior since it did have an audience present. Dragunov managed to defeat “The Ring General” and put an end to his long reign of more than two years. For Dragunov, the first relevant fight of his career on American soil. And what a fight.