NXT UK champion Ilja Dragunov surrenders title due to injury

[Liz]

NXT UK champion Ilja Dragunov has surrendered the NXT UK title during last night's NXT UK television tapings in London due to an injury. It's unknown what caused the injury but Dragunov had his leg in a protective boot.

With the title now vacant, an eight-man tournament will be held to crown the new champion. The episode with Dragunov surrendering the title will take a while to air as there are still a few episodes which have been taped and didn't air yet.

The tournament began during yesterday's tapings as well with the four, first-round matches taped.

Dragunov has been champion since August of last year when he beat Walter at NXT Takeover 36 in one of the matches of the year. He is the fourth person to hold the title which was originally introduced in 2017.