When asked about his longtime rivalry with GUNTHER (previously known as WALTER), host Ryan Satin described the WWE Intercontinental Champion as a physical manifestation of pain. However, Dragunov corrected him.

“I think I am pain, because I’m the person overcoming it every single time,” Dragunov said. “Pain is my friend. When I talked about the most horrible years in my life, just physical-wise, I still don’t want to change a thing. I know there will be other years where it’s going to be horrible and exhausting and mentally painful, too. But if I can take all this pain and put it into the ring, like putting color on a canvas and painting my own picture, creating my own art, … then I do something in a way that nobody else can ever do this.”

Dragunov signed with WWE in 2019, becoming a part of the NXT U.K. brand. He would eventually go on to become WWE NXT U.K. Champion, defeating WALTER (now GUNTHER) in August 2021. As of now, Dragunov is the last person to pin GUNTHER. Additionally, before their time in WWE, Dragunov and WALTER competed many times in German promotion wXw, and even became tag team champions together for a time.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Out of Character with Ryan Satin” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.