Carmelo Hayes Beats Ilja Dragunov to Win WWE US Title on SmackDown

Former NXT superstar Carmelo Hayes has now won his first-ever title as a member of WWE's main roster after he defeated Ilja Dragunov for the United States Championship on Friday's edition of SmackDown.

Hayes hit Dragunov, who was flying off the top rope, with the First 48. He then finished the now ex-champion with Nothing But Net and got the three-count in the middle of the ring for his first-ever WWE belt.

Hayes competed on NXT from 2021-2024 after previously working the independent circuit from 2014-2021. He enjoyed many accolades, including the NXT Championship, the NXT North American Championship (twice) and the NXT Cruiserweight Championship (once). He also won the NXT Breakout Tournament in 2021.

Hayes participated in the 2024 Royal Rumble and later got drafted to SmackDown on April 26 later that year. One year later, Hayes won the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal during WrestleMania 41 weekend.

Now Hayes' rise continues with the United States Championship. He got a congratulations from Triple H afterward.

One can imagine his momentum is only going to skyrocket from this point forward.