Ilja Dragunov was left bloodied once again during the February 20 episode of WWE SmackDown.
WWE’s Road to WrestleMania is heating up. Ilja Dragunov, along with allies like Carmelo Hayes have engaged in a feud with The MFT (Solo Sikoa, Talla Tonga, J.C. Matteo, and Tonga LoaCody).
This week’s opening segment of SmackDown involved chaos erupting after the interaction between Cody Rhodes, Drew McIntyre, and Jacob Fatu.
After that, Dragunov came out for the first match of the night against Tama Tonga. Tonga walked in with Solo Sikoa and other members of his group, trying to get in Dragunov’s head before the match started.
As soon as the bell rang, they started trading heavy strikes, loud chops, and clotheslines. It felt more like a brawl than a regular wrestling match. Dragunov kept pushing forward, just like he always does.
Ilja Dragunov’s SmackDown Match Turns Bloody As Intensity Escalates
Near the end, both men ran off the ropes and smashed into each other with clotheslines at the same time. They both went down, but Dragunov took the worst of it. Replays showed he had seemingly broken his nose, and blood started coming out of his face.
Even with blood running down his mouth, Dragunov tried to keep going. But Tonga took advantage, hit the Cut Throat running elbow, and pinned him for the win. After that, as Solo Sikoa entered the ring to cut a promo, Dragunov attacked him from behind, only to get beaten by Sikoa’s cousins.
Sadly, getting busted open isn’t new for Dragunov. His intense style often leaves him bleeding the hard way. In December 2025, he was busted open during a United States Title match against Tommaso Ciampa. In January 2026, he was bleeding near his eye after a battle with Carmelo Hayes. And fans still remember his brutal 2020 match with Gunther in NXT UK, where his mouth was engulfed in blood.
His matches are always intense and very physical and fans love him for it. However, he has paid the price for his style by succumbing to gruelling injury. In 2024, he tore his ACL in a match against Gunther and was out for over a year.
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