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Company type | Subsidiary |
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Industry | |
Founded | April 30, 2025 |
Founders | Chad Bronstein Terri Francis Hulk Hogan |
Headquarters | , United States |
Key people |
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Owner | Left Lane Capital |
Website | realamericanfreestyle.com |
Real American Freestyle (RAF) is an American freestyle wrestling promotion owned by Left Lane Capital. It was founded in 2025 by Chad Bronstein, Terri Francis, and Hulk Hogan.
Competitors include current NCAA athletes, along with past collegiate wrestling and Olympic wrestling stars. The promotion provides an opportunity for wrestlers to profit from their craft, as historically both collegiate and Olympic wrestling do not allow compensation. A partnership with USA Wrestling allows current NCAA wrestlers to compete and receive compensation through NIL 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 was the former general counsel for Anheuser-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 with Ric Flair to launch his Wooooo! Energy line of energy drinks. [2]
Bronstein and Francis partnered with Hulk Hogan to launch Real American Beer on June 13, 2024, a light beer manufactured by City Brewing Company that carried Hogan's likeness. [3] [4] The beer's name was a nod to "Real American", Hogan's longtime professional wrestling theme song. [5] WWE is a minority owner of Real American Beer. [6]
Bronstein's son Chase Bronstein attended a Chicago wrestling camp in 2024 that was led by UFC 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 new sport wrestling venture. [4] [7]
Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff announced the formation of Real American Freestyle on April 30, 2025. [8] The freestyle wrestling promotion is backed financially by Left Lane Capital and the venture capital fund Cassius, with $3.5 million raised at launch. [4] Chad Bronstein serves as chief executive officer, Bischoff as chief media officer, and Israel "Izzy" Martinez as chief 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's multimedia producer to accomplish this, having previously worked with Bischoff. [12]
In May 2025, MOGL founder Brandon Wimbush was hired as the promotion's chief of staff, and MatScouts founder Willie Saylor was hired as the vice president of talent development. [13]
Wyatt Hendrickson was signed to the promotion's roster in June 2025. [14] Hulk Hogan cited mainstream coverage of Hendrickson's upset of Gable Steveson in the 2025 NCAA Division I Men's Wrestling Championships as a testament to the sport's popularity. [15] Steveson has a clothing line with Takedown Sportswear, the official manufacturer of RAF apparel. [16]
Fox Nation acquired the exclusive broadcast rights to air the promotion's flagship events in July 2025. [17] That same month, RAF co-founder and commissioner Hulk Hogan died. [18]
RAF 01 was held in co-founder Chad Bronstein's hometown of Cleveland, Ohio on August 30, 2025. [19] It featured a video tribute to co-founder Hulk Hogan that was produced by WWE. [20] Hogan's son Nick Hogan appeared at the show, where he began serving as the promotion's acting commissioner. [21] Wyatt Hendrickson won his main event match to become the inaugural RAF Heavyweight Champion. [22]
RAF 02 will take place in State College, Pennsylvania on October 25, 2025. [23]
A weekly two-hour RAF television series will air live beginning in 2026. [24] Competitors on the television series will be wrestling for the chance to perform on an RAF flagship event. [25] Broadcast rights for the series are currently being shopped to various networks. [26]
Division | Weight | Champion | Since | Days | Defenses |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Heavyweight | 285 lbs. | ![]() | August 30, 2025 | 38 | 0 |
Light Heavyweight | 205 lbs. | ![]() | August 30, 2025 | 38 | 0 |
Cruiserweight | 190 lbs. | ![]() | August 30, 2025 | 38 | 0 |
Middleweight | 175 lbs. | ![]() | August 30, 2025 | 38 | 0 |
Welterweight | 165 lbs. | vacant | – | – | – |
Lightweight | 155 lbs. | ![]() | August 30, 2025 | 38 | 0 |
Featherweight | 145 lbs. | ![]() | August 30, 2025 | 38 | 0 |
Bantamweight | 135 lbs. | ![]() | August 30, 2025 | 38 | 0 |
Division | Weight | Champion | Since | Days | Defenses |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Middleweight | 150 lbs. | vacant | – | – | – |
Flyweight | 120 lbs. | vacant | – | – | – |
Strawweight | 120 lbs. | ![]() | August 30, 2025 | 38 | 0 |
The promotion allows amateur wrestlers who excelled in collegiate wrestling and Olympic wrestling to continue their careers and earn money. [10]
USA Wrestling is a partner organization, allowing active NCAA wrestlers to compete and receive compensation through NIL sponsorships without it affecting their eligibility. [27] [28]
RAF utilizes modified United World Wrestling and USA Wrestling rules for freestyle wrestling. [29]
Each RAF event features matches that have three two-minute periods, with a 30-second break between periods. [30]
Matches can end during regulation if a pinfall occurs, or if a technical fall is awarded when one competitor gains a 10-point lead over their opponent. [30] If a match does not end before time expires, the competitor with the highest score at the end of regulation is declared the winner. [30] 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. [28]
The following point system is administered by the league:
Competitors can challenge an official's call using video review. [30] 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. [30]
Event | Date | Venue | Location | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
RAF 02 | Oct 25, 2025 | Bryce Jordan Center | State College, Pennsylvania, U.S. | [23] |
# | Event | Date | Venue | Location | Attendance | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
001 | RAF 01 | Aug 30, 2025 | Wolstein Center | Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. | 4,500 | [31] |