 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | |
| Founded | April 30, 2025; 9 months ago (2025-04-30) |
| Founders | Chad Bronstein Terri Francis Hulk Hogan |
| Headquarters | , United States |
Key people |
|
| Parent | Real American Wrestling, Inc. |
| Website | realamericanfreestyle.com |
Real American Freestyle (RAF) is an Americanfreestyle wrestlingpromotion owned by Real American Wrestling, Inc. and headquartered inTampa, Florida. It was founded in 2025 by Chad Bronstein, Terri Francis, andHulk Hogan.
Competitors include current and formerhigh school wrestlers,collegiate wrestlers,Olympic wrestlers, andmixed martial artists. The promotion provides an opportunity for wrestlers to compete and profit from the sport, asamateur wrestling historically does not permit compensation. A partnership withUSA Wrestling allows currentNCAA wrestlers to compete and receive compensation throughNIL sponsorships.
The promotion debuted with its inaugural event,RAF 01, on August 30, 2025.Fox Nation is the official broadcast home of the promotion's flagship events. A weekly RAF television series will begin airing live in 2026.
Terri Francis wasgeneral counsel forAnheuser-Busch InBev, where she also served as their vice president of investment and innovation until 2022.[1] Chad Bronstein was president of Carma HoldCo until 2023, where he helped the company partner withRic Flair to launch his Wooooo! Energy line ofenergy drinks.[2]
Bronstein and Francis partnered withHulk Hogan to launch Real American Beer on June 13, 2024, alight beer manufactured byCity Brewing Company that carried Hogan's likeness.[3][4] The beer's name was a nod to "Real American", Hogan's longtimeWWE theme song.[5] WWE is aminority owner of Real American Beer.[6]
Bronstein's son Chase Bronstein attended aChicago wrestling camp in 2024 that was led byUFC coach Israel "Izzy" Martinez.[7] Bronstein and Hogan were impressed by Chase's progress after the camp, and they began to develop plans with Martinez for a newsport wrestling venture.[4][7]
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Hulk Hogan andEric Bischoff announced the formation of Real American Freestyle on April 30, 2025.[8] Thefreestyle wrestling promotion is backed financially byLeft Lane Capital and theventure capital fund Cassius, with $3.5 million raised at launch.[4] Chad Bronstein serves aschief executive officer, Bischoff as chief media officer, and Israel "Izzy" Martinez aschief operating officer.[8][9]
Hogan and Bischoff said their goal with the promotion was to elevate and develop top-level competitive wrestlers into stars.[10] They planned on doing that by emphasizing the backstories of each athlete like The Voice does for its singers.[11]David Sahadi was hired as the promotion'smultimedia producer to accomplish this, having previously worked with Bischoff.[12]
MOGL founderBrandon Wimbush was hired as the promotion'schief of staff, wrestlerLance Palmer was hired as the head oftalent development, and MatScouts founder Willie Saylor was hired as the vice president of talent development on May 30, 2025.[13][14]
Wyatt Hendrickson was signed to the promotion's roster on June 4, 2025.[15] Hulk Hogan cited mainstream coverage of Hendrickson's upset ofGable Steveson in the2025 NCAA Division I Men's Wrestling Championships as a testament to the sport's popularity.[16] Steveson has a clothing line with Takedown Sportswear, the official manufacturer of RAF apparel.[17]
Fox Nation acquired the exclusivebroadcast rights to air the promotion's flagship events on July 21, 2025.[18] RAF co-founder and commissioner Hulk Hogan died later that same week on July 24, 2025.[19]
RAF 01 was held in co-founder Chad Bronstein's hometown ofCleveland, Ohio on August 30, 2025.[20] It featured a video tribute to co-founder Hulk Hogan that was produced byWWE.[21] Hogan's sonNick Hogan appeared at the show, where he began serving as the promotion's acting commissioner.[22]Wyatt Hendrickson won his main event match against Mostafa Elders to become the inauguralRAF Heavyweight Champion.[23]
RAF 02 was held inState College, Pennsylvania on October 25, 2025.[24]Kyle Dake defeatedBoris Makoev in the main event to retain hisRAF Cruiserweight Championship.[25]
A multi-year partnership with ALT Sports Data was announced on November 4, 2025 that allowsbetting on RAF matches through majorsportsbooks.[26]
RAF 03 took place inChicago, Illinois on November 29, 2025.[27]Michael Chandler defeatedChad Mendes in the main event.[28]
RAF 04 took place inFishers, Indiana on December 20, 2025.[29]Wyatt Hendrickson defeatedMason Parris in the main event to retain hisRAF Heavyweight Championship.[30]
A weekly two-hour RAF television series will air live beginning in 2026.[31] Competitors on the television series will be wrestling for the chance to perform on an RAF flagship event.[32] Broadcast rights for the series are currently being shopped to various networks.[33]
RAF 05 took place inSunrise, Florida on January 10, 2026.[34]Colby Covington defeatedLuke Rockhold in the main event.[35]
Two-timeOlympic gold medalistAbdulrashid Sadulaev signed an exclusive contract with RAF on January 15, 2026.[36] Sadulaev will receive a reported salary of $100,000 per match, with additional payments of $100,000 for each bout he wins.[37]
Fox Nation extended their exclusivebroadcast rights agreement for airing RAF’s flagship events on January 22, 2026.[38]
RAF: Wrestling’s Greatest Takedowns aired January 29, 2026 onFox Nation.[38] The special was hosted byColby Covington, and featured highlights from the promotion’s first five events.[38]
RAF 06 will take place inTempe, Arizona on February 28, 2026.[39]Henry Cejudo will faceUrijah Faber in the main event.[40]
RAF 07 will take place inTampa, Florida on March 28, 2026.[41]Kyle Dake will defend hisRAF Cruiserweight Championship againstParker Keckeisen in the main event.[41]
| Division | Weight | Champion | Since | Days | Defenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavyweight | 285 lbs. |  Wyatt Hendrickson | August 30, 2025 | 165 | 1 |
| Light Heavyweight | 205 lbs. | Bo Nickal | August 30, 2025 | 165 | 0 |
| Cruiserweight | 190 lbs. | Kyle Dake | August 30, 2025 | 165 | 2 |
| Middleweight | 175 lbs. | Dean Hamiti | December 20, 2025 | 53 | 0 |
| Welterweight | 165 lbs. | David Carr | October 25, 2025 | 109 | 0 |
| Lightweight | 155 lbs. | Yianni Diakomihalis | August 30, 2025 | 165 | 0 |
| Featherweight | 145 lbs. | vacant | — | — | — |
| Bantamweight | 135 lbs. | Austin DeSanto | January 10, 2026 | 32 | 0 |
| Division | Weight | Champion | Since | Days | Defenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Middleweight | 150 lbs. | Kennedy Blades | November 29, 2025 | 74 | 1 |
| Flyweight | 120 lbs. | Helen Maroulis | October 25, 2025 | 109 | 0 |
| Strawweight | 120 lbs. | Sarah Hildebrandt | August 30, 2025 | 165 | 0 |
In contrast toamateur wrestling, which prohibits compensation, RAF allows those who excelled inhigh school wrestling,collegiate wrestling, andOlympic wrestling to profit from the sport.[10] Salaries are not publicly disclosed, with some contracts providing wrestlers both “show” money to compete, and additional “win” money if they are victorious.[42]
USA Wrestling is a partner organization, allowing activeNCAA wrestlers to compete in RAF and receive compensation throughNIL sponsorships without it affecting theireligibility.[43][42]
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has a working relationship with RAF that allows their contractedmixed martial artists to wrestle for the promotion.[44]
RAF utilizes modifiedUnited World Wrestling andUSA Wrestling rules forfreestyle wrestling.[45]
Each RAF event features matches that have three two-minute periods, with a 30-second break between periods.[46]
Matches can end during regulation if apinfall occurs, or if atechnical fall is awarded when one competitor gains a 10-point lead over their opponent.[46] If a match does not end before time expires, the competitor with the highest score at the end of regulation is declared the winner.[46] There is no overtime, and in the event of a tie score at the end of regulation, the competitor who last scored points is declared the victor.[42]
The following point system is administered by the league:
Competitors canchallenge an official's call using video review.[46] If a call is upheld, that competitor loses the ability to challenge again for the rest of the match, and their opponent is awarded 1 point.[46]
| Event | Date | Venue | Location | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAF 07: Dake vs. Keckeisen | Mar 28, 2026 | Yuengling Center | Tampa, Florida, U.S. | [41] |
| RAF 06: Cejudo vs. Faber | Feb 28, 2026 | Mullett Arena | Tempe, Arizona, U.S. | [39] |
| # | Event | Date | Venue | Location | Attendance | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 005 | RAF 05: Covington vs. Rockhold | Jan 10, 2026 | Amerant Bank Arena | Sunrise, Florida, U.S. | [34] | |
| 004 | RAF 04: Hendrickson vs. Parris | Dec 20, 2025 | Fishers Event Center | Fishers, Indiana, U.S. | [30] | |
| 003 | RAF 03: Mendes vs. Chandler | Nov 29, 2025 | Wintrust Arena | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | 5,000 | [28] |
| 002 | RAF 02: Dake vs. Makoev | Oct 25, 2025 | Bryce Jordan Center | State College, Pennsylvania, U.S. | 3,000 | [47] |
| 001 | RAF 01: Hendrickson vs. Elders | Aug 30, 2025 | Wolstein Center | Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. | 4,500 | [48] |
| Career | | |
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| Legal | ||
