The WWE main roster has received an influx of talent over the last few years and back in 2024, Ilja Dragunov was officially drafted to the Monday Night Raw brand. Unfortunately Dragunov suffered an injury shortly after which kept him sidelined for some time, but he joined Friday Night SmackDown in October of 2025, and defeated Sami Zayn to win the United States Championship in his first match back.
In the months that followed Dragunov was a key player on the SmackDown roster as he continued to hold an open challenge on SmackDown as he proved himself to be a fighting champion. While Dragunov established himself on the blue brand he has been noticeably absent from WWE programming for months now.
It looks like Ilja Dragunov will be back on TV soon as Bryan Alvarez of the Wrestling Observer is reporting that, “Ilja Dragunov expected back sooner than later.”
Dragunov has not stepped into the ring since April as he last appeared on the SmackDown before WrestleMania 42 when he competed in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
Even though Ilja Dragunov hasn’t been appearing on television he’s still actively training in the ring and Natalya recently shared the following photo of the former champion last month:
6.17.26 pic.twitter.com/t0lRKAfK0r
— Nattie (@NatbyNature) June 18, 2026
Stay tuned for updates.