Entertainment · TV & Streaming · 1 hr ago
AEW Teases Ilja Dragunov’s Arrival Ahead of WrestleDream
AEW posted another teaser for Ilja Dragunov on Friday, pointing to his expected arrival in the wrestling company.
The video shows training scenes and a man conducting, with a metronome appearing in several shots.
Dragunov left WWE in September after his contract expired and had not appeared on its television since April.
He previously held the WWE United States, NXT and NXT UK championships.
AEW added its WrestleDream hashtag to the teaser, linking it to the event scheduled for Saturday.
AEW has not officially confirmed the signing, although earlier reports described it as imminent.
If he joins, Dragunov would be among several former WWE talents to move to AEW in recent months.
AEW posted a new teaser for Ilja Dragunov ahead of WrestleDream.
The vignette showed Dragunov training and conducting, with a metronome featured in several shots.
AEW used the WrestleDream hashtag in its post.
Dragunov left WWE in September after his contract expired.
AEW had not officially announced his signing in the cited reports.
- Who
- AEW and former WWE wrestler Ilja Dragunov.
- What
- AEW posted a teaser suggesting Dragunov’s arrival. The reports said his signing had not been made official.
- When
- Friday evening, October 16, 2026; another vignette aired on Wednesday.
- Where
- The teaser was posted by AEW online, and an earlier vignette aired during AEW Dynamite and Collision.
- Why
- The teasers appeared to signal Dragunov’s impending arrival at AEW. The sources do not state AEW’s reason for posting them.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Dragunov departed WWE after his contract expired.
A vignette featuring a man believed to be Dragunov aired during Dynamite and Collision.
AEW posted a new Dragunov teaser and used the WrestleDream hashtag.
AEW WrestleDream was scheduled to take place.
- Teaser date
- October 16, 2026
- Event tag
- AEW WrestleDream
- WWE departure
- September 2026
- Earlier vignette
- 22 seconds
- Dragunov’s WWE tenure
- Since 2019
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