Ilja Dragunov isn’t feeling any additional pressure heading into his rematch with NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes tonight at No Mercy.
NXT Superstar Ilja Dragunov recently spoke with Rick Ucchino of Cageside Seats. When asked if there is added pressure to live up to expectations of his first match with Carmelo Hayes at No Mercy, Dragunov doesn’t believe so.
“I wouldn’t say so, to be honest, I wouldn’t say so, because if you’re a person like me, who already always put everything I have into something, into all the performances,” Ilja Dragunov said. “I don’t care about those calls of I gotta follow up with this. We need to follow up with this. We need to do something better or whatever.
“Everything that attaches people is the story, is the depth. And the story is already there. Because after the first match, everything that happened after this, the people are captivated [as] Camelo tries to keep this Championship.
“I’m looking out for my destiny that I have been following since I came back to NXT. There’s already a bunch of fire in this feud, and you just need to let this fire explode another time. And I have no worries, no doubts, that this performance, that we’re gonna deliver is gonna be spectacular or just like the last one.”
Ilja Dragunov has high praise for Carmelo Hayes
When asked what he thinks makes NXT Champion Carmelo Hayes special, Dragunov pointed to his undeniable charisma.
“Of course, it’s gonna be the charisma,” Ilja Dragunov said. “It’s gonna be the athleticism, but I think if you really have this greatness to become Champion like he did and how he was probably supposed to be because we can tell [he’s had] it since he started, is he has a certain aura about him. He has an aura that people see like, ‘Oh my God’.
“If I see this person, I need to cheer for him. I feel like I need to see him again and again, again and again. He has this certain aura that is very, very hard to teach. And this makes him so outstanding, and it makes everything he does so outstanding. If you don’t have this aura and you don’t find a way to develop it, you’re not gonna reach heights like he did.”
READ MORE: Ilja Dragunov Names Gunther As His Dream Opponent For WrestleMania
What do you make of Ilja Dragunov’s comments? Are you looking forward to his rematch with Carmelo Hayes at NXT No Mercy? Let us know your thoughts by sounding off in the comments section below.
