When NXT UK officially went on hiatus in September 2022, Ilja Dragunov and Meiko Satomura were at the top of the mountain in the promotion.
Dragunov never lost the NXT UK Championship, having to relinquish the belt in July 2022, paving the way for Tyler Bate to win the title and then unify it against Bron Breakker at NXT Worlds Collide. Satomura was the NXT UK Women's Champion, but lost the unification bout to NXT Women's Champion Mandy Rose and Blair Davenport in a triple threat match.
Satomura has wrestled just once since NXT Worlds Collide while Dragunov returned to the ring in September and has wrestled a handful of matches on NXT television, including challenging for the NXT Championship in a triple threat bout at NXT Halloween Havoc.
When asked about the status of both competitors, neither of whom has wrestled since October on NXT TV, Shawn Michaels said on the NXT Vengeance Day media call, "Much like several months ago, we want them here and love having them here. A lot of it is availability, a lot of it is, as you said, visa issues. A lot of it, also, that is a big career move and life difference. Those are all things we want people to consider before they make that move. Nothing would thrill me more than to have Ilja and Meiko here on a regular basis. They are phenomenal talent. We're thrilled about Gallus being back and Tyler (Bate) being back. As far as who is to come in the future, a lot of that is up to the talent themselves and, also, there are visa issues, but we're waiting on a long-term commitment from some people and we understand that's not an easy decision to make."
It is unknown if or when Satomura or Dragunov will return to NXT television.
Gallus (Mark Coffey & Wolfgang) are set to challenge for the NXT Tag Team Championships at NXT Vengeance Day in a four-way bout that features champions The New Day (Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods), Pretty Deadly (Elton Prince & Kit Wilson), and Andre Chase & Duke Hudson.
Fightful will have live coverage of NXT Vengeance Day beginning at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday.
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