SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
Ilja Dragunov said he decideioid to leave WWE and sign with AEW because he saw AEW as a better fit for him. “It was an accumulation of a lot of things,” said Dragunov during an interview 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 the most of my 20s in WWE. That’s a very, very long time.”
Dragunov mentioned that since he signed with WWE, the wrestling landscape has changed with AEW launching as a new alternate. “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?”
Dragonuv made his AEW debut on Oct. 17 at the WrestleDream PPV. He is scheduled to make his in-ring debut on Dynamite this week.
