Wrestler Ilja Dragunov’s WWE exit has followed the expiration of his contract, less than a year after he returned from a torn ACL and captured the United States Championship.
PWInsider reported that Dragunov’s WWE deal had expired. WWE subsequently moved the 32-year-old former champion’s profile to the alumni section of its website.
Dragunov returned to “SmackDown” in October 2025 after spending more than a year sidelined by the knee injury. In his first match back, he answered Sami Zayn’s United States Championship open challenge and defeated him for the title.
He then defended the championship through a series of open challenges before losing it to Carmelo Hayes in December 2025.
Dragunov continued appearing after losing the belt but gradually disappeared from WWE television. His final match took place in April 2026, followed by roughly four months without an in-ring appearance.
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No official explanation has been given for why WWE and Dragunov did not continue their relationship after their contract expired.
Dragunov leaves WWE having held the NXT UK Championship, NXT Championship and United States Championship during his run with the company.
