By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
New AEW signee Ilja Dragunov has addressed his decision to leave WWE. “It was an accumulation of a lot of things,” Dragunov said on The Ariel Helwani Show. “An accumulation of, of course, the offering, because we all know, at the end of the day, it’s the business. But it’s also definitely based on my feeling of, like, how do I want to work creatively? Do I need a scenery change? Is the scenery change something where I can see myself staying forever? Because you’ve got to consider a lot of factors.
“Like, I spent most of my 20s in WWE. That’s a very, very long time. And the landscape in this beautiful business changed. So the beautiful thing is, nowadays we have other opportunities. And for me personally, after such a long time being with a company, to not seek out new opportunities, maybe a place where I see myself more fitting. Who wouldn’t do that?” Check out the show below or via YouTube.com
Powell’s POV: It felt like Dragunov went as far as WWE was going to push him. His in-ring style makes him a really good fit in AEW. Dragunov made his AEW debut in a non-wrestling appearance at Saturday’s AEW WrestleDream. His first AEW match is scheduled for Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite. [H/T to F4Wonline.com transcribing the quotes]
(Jason Powell, founder and editor of ProWrestling.net, has covered pro wrestling full-time since 1997. He hosts the weekly podcast, Pro Wrestling Boom, and appears regularly on the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast. Reach him via email at dotnetjason@gmail.com and on social media via @prowrestlingnet.bsky.social or x.com/prowrestlingnet. For his full bio and information on this website, click here.)
