Ilja Dragunov has barely gotten started in AEW, and Jonathan Coachman is already wondering how WWE let this one get away. After watching Dragunov’s WrestleDream debut, Coachman and JD both came away believing WWE could have done a whole lot more with him.
Speaking on 2 Count Tuesday, JD said Dragunov’s AEW presentation was even better than he expected. Everything from the music to his look screamed top star to him, and he thinks Dragunov could eventually follow the same path Swerve Strickland did.
“If they take Dragunov, I look at it more like a Swerve Strickland. When Swerve came in, it took him a little bit of time to find his footing, and he eventually became a world champion.”
JD doesn’t just see Dragunov as someone who could have a nice run in AEW either. He thinks there’s legitimate World Champion potential there, and possibly even someone who could eventually become one of the faces of the company.
“I think if they let Dragunov be Dragunov, I think he could be a world champion just like Swerve was, and he can be an ace for that company. That’s how high I think of Dragunov.”
That’s also why JD can’t understand what happened in WWE. From his perspective, Dragunov already had everything needed to become a major player, but WWE never gave him enough to actually get there.
“I don’t know why WWE would let him go. I don’t know why WWE dropped the ball on him. I don’t know why they didn’t give him the resources to be a top guy. He’s got top-guy potential, and he’s top-guy shit.”
Coachman jumped right on that point, and he put a lot of the responsibility on WWE creative. He wants to know what was actually being written for someone like Dragunov before his run with the company came to an end.
“Yeah, it’s that last question — you’ve got to give creative. And this is why I’ve been calling for creative to be called on the carpet, is walk in and show me what you have written. Show me what you have done, because a guy like that, you’ve got to give him creative.”
Coachman also brought Triple H into it. He’s tired of hearing that wrestlers need to simply get themselves over when, in his view, creative should be doing its part to put them in a position where that can actually happen.
“I’m so tired of hearing people — whether it’s Tony… Oh, they got to — well, Tony doesn’t say it, but Triple H does — ‘He’s got to get himself over. He’s got to get herself over.’”
For Coachman, WrestleDream was a pretty good example of what he’s talking about. Dragunov already looks and sounds like a star, so he doesn’t think AEW needs to make every appearance another 15- or 20-minute match just to prove how good he is.
“And last night, you talked about the presentation — or at WrestleDream — when you look like a star, sound like a star, and then you go out there and have not 15- or 20-minute matches every time. Make it — change it up just a little bit.”
Instead, Coachman wants AEW to keep finding different ways to showcase him. That’s where he believes creative needs to earn its money instead of expecting Dragunov to figure everything out by himself.
“Present him differently all the way. But this is where creative’s got to step up, and they’ve got to step up for him.”
It’s way too early to know whether Dragunov actually becomes the kind of AEW star JD thinks he can be. But after one presentation, they’re already asking the question WWE probably doesn’t want to hear — did the company let a future top guy walk right out the door?
What do you think about WWE’s handling of Ilja Dragunov before he eventually left the company? Let us know in the comments below.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
