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Ilja Dragunov discusses his WWE departure, AEW debut

Ilja Dragunov, left, during a match with Carmelo Hayes on WWE SmackDown. USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

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Ilja Dragunov discusses his WWE departure, AEW debut

By Josh Bennett | Last updated Oct 20, 2026 7:00 PM ET

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After spending seven years under the WWE umbrella, which included winning the United States and NXT Championships, Ilja Dragunov made his AEW debut on Saturday at WrestleDream, giving the promotion a much-needed positive boost after the sudden deaths of Benjamin "Pac" Satterley and Andy “The Butcher” Williams.

Dragunov sat down with Ariel Helwani on “The Ariel Helwani Show” to discuss how his AEW signing came to be and why he left WWE.

In terms of leaving WWE, Dragunov claims that WWE had “no intention” to let him go, but negotiations to renew his contract didn’t go anywhere and felt that there’s was nothing else WWE had to offer for him to stick around.

“There was nothing that I felt satisfying. Nothing that gave me the perspective of, 'Oh, I must stick with what I have here,'” Dragunov said. “I had a gut feeling. I think things will work out for me, that I can bet on myself.”

The moment that Ilja Dragunov (@UNBESIEGBAR_ZAR) became #AllElite at #AEWWrestleDream! https://t.co/6Jegn2pClc
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) October 18, 2026

Ilja Dragunov opens up about why he chose to leave WWE: “There was no intention of the company to let me go. It was an accumulation of a lot of things. Of course, the offering, because we all know at the end of the day, it's a business. But also, it's definitely based on my feeling of how I want to work creatively. I spent most of my twenties in WWE. That's a very, very long time, and the landscape in this beautiful business changed. Everything I knew is that the expiration of my contract came and the negotiations didn't lead anywhere. There was nothing that I felt satisfying. Nothing that gave me the perspective of, 'Oo, I must stick with what I have here.' I had a gut feeling. I think things will work out for me, that I can bet on myself. Change always requires guts. It requires courage. It requires dealing with the possibility that things could not work out your way. It all came down to betting on myself and believing it's going to be all right.”
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) October 20, 2026

Ilja Dragunov explains lack of fit with WWE

Dragunov would further explain why WWE was no longer a fit for him, detailing the direction, or lack thereof, of his booking after his run with the United States Championship in 2025:

“After I dropped the belt, things kind of went in directions where I felt like it could have been better. There could have been more time to go into a story, into something that is outside of just holding a championship, captivating for the people.”

Ilja Dragunov reveals when he began to feel that WWE might no longer be the right place for him: "After I dropped the belt, things kind of went in directions where I felt like, ok, it could have been better. There could have been more time to go into a story, into something that is outside of just holding a championship, captivating for the people. It never changed anything about my work mentality, because I love what I do, and I make every minute count for myself. But we all have feelings, and especially if we're in a business like this, we want to devote ourselves to this.”
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) October 20, 2026

Dragunov’s final match was the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal on the April 17 episode of “SmackDown." His contract expired on Aug. 20, opening the door for him to sign with AEW, claiming that AEW was the only company he spoke with during his brief time as a free agent.

After airing a mystery vignette promoting his debut on the Oct. 14 “Collision,” Dragunov debuted with major fanfare on Saturday, going back to his roots by using his original theme song “Soviet March” from the video game "Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3."

“All of my career is based on that music, and when I heard it and did my entrance at WrestleDream, I felt like a child again in that business. I was craving this feeling for a very, very long time.”

Ilja Dragunov explains the significance of bringing back his original entrance music for his first AEW appearance: “That day at WrestleDream was a fairy tale for me. From all the nuances to the warm welcome of the fans to all the work that AEW put into that. Even the entrance music, that it was possible to get this specific entrance music, touched my heart. I'm Russian born but German raised boy... When I started my very young path in independent wrestling in Germany, that was my entrance music. It guided me through my youngest years to my biggest moments that put me on the platform in Europe, got me to the United Kingdom, got me to the States. All of my career is based on that music, and when I heard it and did my entrance at WrestleDream, I felt like a child again in that business. I was craving this feeling for a very, very long time.”
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) October 20, 2026

"Everything right now feels very brand new, but also very nostalgic at a certain point,” Dragunov said. “And this is a very beautiful feeling to me.”

Dragunov will make his AEW in-ring debut against an unnamed opponent on Wednesday’s episode of “Dynamite.”

“Whatever poor soul it’s gonna hit, I just want them to know already it’s nothing personal. It’s just my devotion to professional wrestling.”

Josh Bennett

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