After weeks of talking and vignettes on AEW programmingIlya Dragunov made his AEW debut at WrestleDream. The star came out for his full entrance and then sat next to AEW President Tony Khan during the post-show press conference where it took place; revealed that he will make his in-ring debut at AEW Dynamite.
Before entering the ring on television for the first time since April, Dragunov appeared “The Ariel Helwani Show“To discuss his WWE departure. It turned out that Dragunov’s contract expired in Augustand the star told Helwani that the story of his departure was not very exciting.
“I love what I do, I want to compete, I want to work,” said Dragunov. “It just stuck a little bit. But, it’s not news to anyone. It was pretty obvious. So time went by and I reached the end of my contract… as time went on I felt like, well, how things work out and how I feel, because I make a lot of (decisions) depending on how I feel about it, I’ve always had time to feel new. air.”
The star said that despite what was written online at the time, WWE had no intention of letting him go. He said his departure was an accumulation of many things, including what he wanted creatively. Dragunov said he was considering a change of scenery, and if it was somewhere he could see himself staying “forever.”
“I spent most of my 20s in WWE,” he explained. “It’s been a very, very long time. The landscape of this beautiful business has changed… For me personally, after being with the company for so long, not to look for new opportunities, maybe somewhere more suitable, who wouldn’t do that?”
Dragunov is keeping quiet about the WWE contract offer
Dragunov reiterated that the story of his departure is not as exciting as it was supposed to be. He said that at certain points in WWE, you just don’t get creative and wait for opportunities. He explained that towards the end of his time in WWE, a lot of new people have come in and there is only so much time for so many people. When Helvan inquired whether Dragunov was asked to reduce his salary or not, like New Level’s Kofi and Austin CreedAEW’s newest star stayed on topic.
“To be honest, I myself am too reserved and too much of a businessman and gentleman to talk about such things,” said Dragunov. “All I can say is there wasn’t anything that I was satisfied with and nothing that gave me the ‘OK, I’ve got to stick with it (here)’ point of view.”
The “Mad Dragon” said that he has always believed in himself and has never been one to question his beliefs. She explained that she always follows her gut in life and it always works out for her. The star said that many people want to change, but that change requires courage.
“It also requires (dealing with) the possibility that things may not go your way. I was aware of all this,” he said. “April was the last time I was in the ring, the feeling that maybe ‘I’m not in the right place.’ I’ve had it before… It all came down to betting on myself and believing that everything was going to be okay. That’s what I’ve done my entire 14-year pro wrestling career.”
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “The Ariel Helwan Show” and credit ah/t Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.