Ilja Dragunov is set to return to the fold of active stars on the WWE roster. The “Mad Dragon” has been out of action for nearly a year after he tore his ACL. Rumors are growing that his return is on the horizon. But not only is his return incoming, but it looks like there’s a big feud to make between him and Rusev, and this would be the perfect step to take.
Rusev has been in an interesting spot since his return to the company a few months ago. He is coming out of an angle with Sheamus, where he and his former stablemate beat the mess out of each other for weeks. His last match was on the September 8 episode of WWE Monday Night Raw, where he defeated Penta in less than ten minutes. He’s building some momentum, which should be capitalized on by slotting him against someone like Dragunov.
“My main goal was, you know, to show these young kids that they need to take advantage of the opportunity they have to go to show up every day, work hard, and strive for more,” Rusev said while speaking to Vox Catch. “Because I see a lot of them, they are just complacent. And I’ve been there and I know how they feel. So, I wanted to help them.”
Dragunov is far from complacent, but he is a young talent who could use a “rub” against someone as established as Rusev. Neither Dragunov nor Rusev are anywhere near a title picture, and this is the type of feud that will help either, or potentially both of them, get there.
Now, one can’t talk about a major feud in WWE and not talk about the company’s inability to consistently book credible winners. Expect this feud to involve several matches with the majority of them ending in disqualification. WWE’s creative team seems incapable of booking one wrestler to beat another and building a feud off of wins and losses. This isn’t a new practice, as it has been a complaint about the promotion for years. The same is going to happen between Dragunov and Rusev, but at least the matches will be fun.
Ilja Dragunov needs a big feud when he comes back to action. Rusev is the right man for that task. If he’s going to use his run to help build up the younger talents, none are better to work with than Dragunov who is one of the best young performers in the business today.