Ilja Dragunov Recalls How He Felt Near the End of His WWE Run, Says He Feels ‘Freedom’ in AEW

During a recent interview with The Takedown on Sports Illustrated this week, newly signed AEW star Ilja Dragunov discussed his WWE exit and joining AEW. Dragunov makes his AEW in-ring debut later tonight. Below are some highlights:

Ilja Dragunov on How He Felt Near the End of His WWE Run

“It has been a very complicated time for me because, you see, I came back from an ACL tear that happened in the most unexciting way possible. I worked myself through rehab and was training very hard, and was very dedicated. I came back, and I won the United States Championship basically on my return, which was an awesome, memorable moment.

“But then certain times, like after I dropped the belt and I was going through my next performances, I felt like I felt in my gut things are different. And I don’t blame anybody. I’m a gentleman and I have way too much respect for the last seven years that I the most of my 20s that I spent with the company. But I felt like it is fine for me and reasonable to ask myself, ‘Is there more? Is there a new air I can breathe?'”

On The New Level’s AEW Debut Catching His Attention

“I mean, it would be a lie if it wouldn’t, right? You see people perform in a way that they didn’t perform in a while anymore. I can tell, hopefully, or just feel, or can try to imagine a certain happiness if I watch them, what they’re doing, and just reconnecting with these people that you shared some time with. You can just tell that it’s definitely a new place and something they appreciate [being] a part of.”

On How He Feels After Joining AEW

“It lets my heart beat faster, and I feel like I re-fell in love with professional wrestling in some kind of way. The experience that I’ve had so far is having people around me that really want to portray everything that is going on in my mind, that really understand what I’m doing,” he said of his AEW experience so far. They want to enhance what I’m doing and they want to put it into the right light, what I’m doing. And I feel if you can describe it with some word, I feel freedom.”

Ilja Dragunov makes his AEW in-ring debut later tonight on AEW Dynamite against Speedball Mike Bailey. Tonight’s show is being held at the Watsco Center in Coral Gables, Florida. The show will air live on TBS starting at 8:00 pm ET. It will also be simulcast on HBO Max.