Ilja Dragunov is officially AEW-bound. After weeks of the former WWE star looking like one of Tony Khan’s next big pickups, the deal is now said to be done — and Dragunov may not be sitting on the sidelines much longer.
Dave Meltzer revealed the signing in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, writing that Dragunov has signed with AEW and is expected to start “very soon.” That’s a major jump from where things stood just days ago, when Ringside News covered Dragunov being set to join AEW even though a signed contract had not yet been confirmed. Meltzer said the move had been coming for a while, especially after Tony Khan started openly praising Dragunov following his WWE exit.
“As has been expected, Ilja Dragunov (Ilja Rukober, who turns 33 in a few weeks), has signed and should be starting very soon. This was pretty apparent in August the way Tony Khan was talking about him but as he noted with the New Level, these deals often take weeks to finalize. Obviously he’s a guy who can have great matches. But at this point they almost need more TV to facilitate such a large roster and keep people in the public eye.”
Khan certainly wasn’t hiding his admiration before the deal came together. Ringside News covered Khan calling Dragunov a “tremendous professional wrestler” shortly after his WWE contract expired, although the AEW boss refused to confirm negotiations at the time.
The writing got even bigger on the wall this week. Dragunov’s expected AEW landing spot became much more concrete, with the only major question being when the former NXT Champion would actually show up.
Now that question is about to get a lot louder. One possible landing spot is AEW’s October 6 Grand Slam: France event in Paris. Meltzer previously floated Paris as a potential debut location, especially considering Dragunov built a huge chunk of his career wrestling across Europe before coming to WWE. The timing would also give AEW one hell of a way to introduce him. Grand Slam: France takes place on a Tuesday night opposite WWE NXT, so unleashing a former WWE and NXT star on that show would immediately give fans something to talk about.
Nothing has been announced for Dragunov’s first AEW appearance yet, so Paris remains speculation. What isn’t speculation anymore, according to Meltzer, is where Dragunov is headed.
Dragunov left WWE after his contract expired in August, ending a run that included the NXT Championship, NXT UK Championship and United States Championship. Ringside News previously covered speculation that Dragunov could be in line for a significant AEW offer after WWE and Dragunov went their separate ways.
Now Tony Khan apparently got his man. AEW already has one of the deepest rosters in wrestling, and Dragunov is about to make it even more ridiculous. The only thing left is deciding when to hit his music — and if “very soon” really means very soon, fans may not have long to wait.
Where would you debut Ilja Dragunov in AEW, and who should be standing across the ring from him first? Let us know what you think and leave your feedback in the comments.
