"Destiny" - Newly-drafted WWE star reacts to finally meeting Gunther 981 days after their last match

Gunther could be meeting a ghost of his past as one of the men who ended his record-breaking run is now part of the Monday Night roster. We're not talking about Sami Zayn, but Ilja Dragunov, who faced the Ring General 981 days ago.

Some may not know this, but before Gunther became the longest-reigning Intercontinental Champion of all time, he was the longest-reigning Champion of the WWE modern era. This was, of course, until Roman Reigns touched 871 days as Universal Champion. Before that, the man previously known as Walter held the NXT: UK Championship for a whopping 870 days.

The man to end that was Ilja Dragunov, who ended Gunther's reign as UK Champion at NXT Takeover: 36, 971 days ago. Reacting to the question about the Imperium leader, Dragunov described the meeting as "destiny."

Gunther's previous reaction to Ilja Dragunov joining Imperium

There was some speculation that Dragunov was being called up to the main roster last year to join the ranks in Imperium. Thankfully, it didn't work out that way, and Dragunov went on to become the NXT Champion until Trick Williams recently dethroned him.

On an episode of Gorilla Position, The Ring General believed that the Mad Dragon is a better enemy than a friend to him:

"I think Ilja [Dragunov] is a better enemy than a friend. Yeah, it has to come down to that. He's one of us in terms of Kaiser, Ilja, and I, we all have wrestled each other years back. So, I naturally want him to be where I am, and I think he's somebody that brings out the best in me, and I'm someone that brings out the best in him. I think before it can happen, he has his own way to go, wherever he ends up." [From 25:25 to 26:00]

It's hard to imagine Dragunov as a part of NXT or even playing second fiddle to anybody.