Following the results of the 2024 WWE Draft, former Intercontinental Champion GUNTHER and former NXT Champion Ilja Dragunov are once again on the same brand. The two men have gone to war multiple times over the years for companies like wXw, PWG, and Progress, before bringing their feud to "WWE NXT UK," where the two fought in a pair of matches widely seen as two of the best in WWE history. GUNTHER opened up regarding Dragunov's prospects in a recent appearance on "Gorilla Position."

"I think that's somebody that is like kind of waiting to explode right now," GUNTHER said. "I think he would be the guy that I would single out right now that performs at a stage that he's, I would say, almost too advanced for right now." The former NXT UK Champion was then asked if he would rather face Dragunov again, or recruit him to Imperium now that Giovanni Vinci has left the group, and while 'The Ring General' has a lot in common with Dragunov, he would prefer to face him.

"I think Ilja is definitely a better enemy than a friend," GUNTHER said. "It has to come down to that. Ilja is one of us in the terms of like [Ludwig] Kaiser, Ilja and I, we all wrestled each other years back, so I naturally want him to be where I am. I think he's somebody that brings out the best in me, and I'm someone that brings out the best in him." GUNTHER rounded off by saying that before he and Dragunov can cross paths again, the former NXT Champion will need to go on his own journey that inevitably leads them back around to facing each other.

Please credit "Gorilla Position" when using quotes from this article, and give a H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.