Big Spoiler On Ilja Dragunov's WWE NXT Status

WWE presented "NXT UK" as a brand from 2018 until 2022, with the company airing the final episode on September 1. While WWE released a majority of the "NXT UK" talent — such as Mark Andrews and Emilia McKenzie — Ilja Dragunov was not one of them. The former "NXT UK" Champion wrestled his first match for the company in April 2019 and remained with the brand throughout the rest of its existence. However, now that "NXT UK" is no more, there were questions of what the future would hold for Dragunov.

While "NXT" was taping shows for the two upcoming Tuesdays on Wednesday, September 14, Rich Schellhase tweeted four photos of the returning Dragunov. The last photo of the four showed Dragunov with NXT Champion Bron Breakker and JD McDonagh, who became the number one contender for the "NXT" Championship during the tapings, possibly signaling a triple threat match between them.

Dragunov found much success in "NXT UK," winning the "NXT UK" Championship by defeating Gunther — then known as WALTER — for the title, ending the Ring General's 870-day reign in his second attempt. Dragunov became the first man in the company's history to defeat Gunther, as he forced him to tap out after he applied a sleeper hold —one of Gunther's main finishing maneuvers — for the win. Dragunov's reign lasted 319 days, successfully defending the title against talent such as Roderick Strong and Nathan Frazer. As fate would have it, Dragunov suffered an injury that forced the Czar to relinquish the "NXT UK" Championship on the August 4 edition of "NXT UK."