A major WWE title will be on the line during tonight's edition of SmackDown. This week's episode of the blue brand will air live from the Mullett Arena in Tempe, Arizona.Ilja Dragunov missed over a year of action due to a major injury before his return to WWE SmackDown last week. The Mad Dragon answered Sami Zayn's Open Challenge for the United States Championship, and the two stars had a great match. Solo Sikoa distracted Zayn during the match, and Dragunov was able to capitalize with the H-Bomb for the pinfall victory and is the new United States Champion.The promotion shared a video of Dragunov arriving at the arena for tonight's show, and he announced that he would be continuing the Open Challenge for the United States Championship on SmackDown."I won this belt from a great man, a great fighter, a great champion. So it is my duty, it is my duty to keep the legacy of the Open Challenges alive. So, tonight, dear friends and enemies, pain!" said Dragunov.Solo Sikoa and the MFT faction attacked Sami Zayn and Ilja Dragunov last week on SmackDown following their title match. However, The Wyatt Sicks showed up, and Sikoa's faction retreated to end the segment.Former WWE writer claims the company made a mistake with Ilja Dragunov's returnVince Russo recently claimed that WWE made a mistake by pushing Ilja Dragunov upon his return to action and compared him to Otis.Speaking on Sportskeeda Wrestling's Writing with Russo show, the legend suggested that Otis would draw more money than Dragunov if the company decided to get behind him. He also complained about the WWE pushing stars such as Aleister Black and Sami Zayn as well."If you take Ilja Dragunov and put him next to Otis, and you say, okay guys, here's the first thing you do. Cut a promo. Okay, no problem. Let me see a five minute match. Okay, now you've got to decide which one of these guys you've got to pick that's going to draw more. It's hands down Otis. And look at how they treated him. He's gone for so long and then he's in that freaking Royal Rumble. This guy is so entertaining. He could have been Ivan Putski circa 2025 if booked correctly. But bro, they keep going for the Aleister Blacks, the Dragunovs, and Sami Zayns," said Russo.Wrestle Ops @WrestleOpsLINKIlja Dragunov will be continuing on the U.S Open Challenge tonight on SmackDown.It will be interesting to see which WWE star accepts the Open Challenge for the United States Championship tonight on SmackDown.