Ilja Dragunov: It’s Easier To Be Good In The Ring, But Very Hard To Be Incomparable

Ilja Dragunov speaks on his role models and standing out in the ring.

Prior to capturing the NXT Championship at NXT No Mercy, Ilja Dragunov spoke to Adrian Hernandez of The Bet Las Vegas about looking up to the likes of Nigel McGuinness and Shawn Michaels.

“It’s funny that you call Nigel McGuinness, big shout out to him. He’s one of my first big role models,” Dragunov said. “I got idols, but his performance, I really, really love. A lot of the things I do today are based on his accomplishments and his style, so wonderful, wonderful performer back in the day.

“Today, I feel there’s a lot of things. Just look at the person running the place, Shawn Michaels. Such a unique performer he has been. Everything he did was entirely his own and to accomplish that was so hard. It is so hard to be different than anyone else because just from a performance standpoint, I think it is easier to be good in the ring, but it is very, very hard to be incomparable in the ring, if that makes sense.

“This is something he, for example, accomplished, and this is something I try to do all the time. It’s performance art if you do it right. So if you do everything in a certain different way and in a way only you can do them — if you handle yourself in a way only you can do that, I think this is the biggest thing you can possibly accomplish in this industry.”

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit The Bet Las Vegas with a h/t to WrestleZone for the transcription.