Carmelo Hayes Beats Ilja Dragunov to Retain NXT Title at Great American Bash 2023

Carmelo Hayes defeated Ilja Dragunov at NXT: The Great American Bash on Sunday to retain the NXT Championship.

It was a hard-hitting affair with memorable moments from both wrestlers, and Hayes managed to continue his reign.

Hayes vs. Dragunov became official for Great American Bash a couple of weeks ago on NXT TV when Dragunov beat Bron Breakker in a physical, hard-hitting encounter to earn the No. 1 contendership.

Later that night, Hayes and Trick Williams teamed up to face Judgment Day members Finn Balor and Damian Priest, and Dragunov attempted to lend Melo a helping hand in the latter stages.

Dragunov grabbed the Money in the Bank briefcase away from Priest before he could use it, but when Hayes went to hit Priest, he ducked, and Melo ended up striking Dragunov off the apron instead.

Priest took advantage with a South of Heaven Chokeslam on Hayes, and Balor then hit him with the Coup de Grace for the win.

NXT went off the air that night with a frustrated Hayes seemingly blaming Dragunov for costing him and Trick the match.

Two weeks later, Trick called Dragunov out, and in the closing segment of the show, Dragunov brutally attacked Melo’s best friend. The episode ended with Dragunov accidentally taking out Hayes, who tried to stop the beat down.

Hayes quickly had to refocus and prepare for his match against Dragunov, who was already no stranger to holding championship gold in WWE.

In 2021, Dragunov defeated Gunther at NXT TakeOver 36 to win the NXT United Kingdom Championship and end Gunther’s remarkable 870-day reign.

With wins over Gunther and Breakker to his credit, Dragunov was a massive threat to take down Hayes at Great American Bash, although Melo has built an incredibly impressive track record in his own right.

In addition to beating Breakker for the NXT Championship, Hayes is a two-time North American champion, one-time cruiserweight champion and the winner of the 2021 NXT Breakout Tournament.

Sunday represented a battle between two of the best NXT has to offer, and Hayes managed to leave Cedar Park, Texas, with his title in tow.

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