In October 2017, Ignatov competed in his first ISU Challenger Series event, the 2017 CS Minsk-Arena Ice Star, where he placed fifth.

In February, Ignatov placed fourth at the Russian Cup Final[8] with first technical element score in the free skate.

[9] In March, he won the St. Petersburg Cup Final with two clean performances, including two quads and triple Axels in each of the programs.

[10] In late September, Ignatov won gold at the 2019 CS Nebelhorn Trophy after placing seventh in the short program and first in the free skate.

[12] At the 2020 Russian Championships, Ignatov won the short program, making only a slight error on his quad toe loop and receiving low marks on his spins.

[16] With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing to affect international travel, the ISU opted to run the Grand Prix based primarily on geographic location.

Ignatov was assigned to the 2020 Rostelecom Cup, placing fourth in the short program and landing a clean quad loop but underrotating part of his jump combination.

[18] Competing at the 2021 Russian Championships, Ignatov placed second in the short program with a clean skate, four points behind leader Mikhail Kolyada.

[19] He struggled with some jump landings in the free skate, placing third in that segment behind Kolyada and Mark Kondratiuk, but remained in the silver medal position overall.