The AEW WrestleDream pay-per-view aired live from Orlando, Florida on Saturday night and the show featured some action packed matches. Swerve Strickland & The New Level dropped the AEW World Trios Championship to Adam Page & Brodido, and immediately after Renee Paquette made her way out to the stage.
Renee told the fans that she was honored to introduce the newest member of the All Elite Wrestling roster, and that’s when Ilja Dragunov made his way out into the arena.
Dragunov walked down to the ring and received a big reaction from the fans in attendance. The former United States Champion hopped up on the ropes and hyped up the crowd for a few minutes before walking back up the ramp and leaving.
Ilja Dragunov parted ways with WWE a few months ago, and it was reported last month that he had signed a contract with All Elite Wrestling. The company had been teasing his debut all week and now it seems that Dragunov is officially All Elite.
Ahead of the big debut there was some speculation regarding what name he would be using, but he was very clearly referred to as Ilja Dragunov, so it appears that there will be no name change for the former WWE star now that he’s in AEW.
.@UNBESIEGBAR_ZAR HAS ARRIVED IN AEW! 🔥
Watch #AEWWrestleDream LIVE on PPV! https://t.co/xgAQR6LoMZ
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) October 18, 2026