Ilja Dragunov was scheduled to compete on the special “New Year’s Evil” episode of WWE NXT. On Tuesday night, WWE announced that he was not cleared to compete. A new report provides an update on the situation.
NXT Champion Ilja Dragunov suffered an apparent injury during a match against Ridge Holland on the December 19 episode of WWE NXT. Corey Brennan of Fightful subsequently reported that the injury was part of a storyline. Dragunov was set to defend the gold against Trick Williams at NXT New Year’s Evil. However, WWE announced that he was not cleared to compete on Tuesday.
Nick Hausman of Haus of Wrestling reports that, per a “tenured WWE source”, Dragunov is banged up coming out of 2023. Haumsn notes His body is taking longer to heal than expected. The report notes that the call to pull him from New Year’s Evil was made this past weekend. Hausman also writes that the time frame for his return is uncertain.
WrestleZone will provide more information as it becomes available.
Catch up on our coverage of NXT New Year’s Evil here.
