Hulk Hogan Launches Actual American Freestyle Wrestling League, Goals to Elevate Unscripted Competitors

New York, NY – Could 1, 2025 – Wrestling icon Hulk Hogan, alongside longtime collaborator Eric Bischoff and famend freestyle wrestling coach Israel Martinez, has unveiled Actual American Freestyle (RAF), a brand new unscripted freestyle wrestling league set to debut on August 30, 2025, in Cleveland, Ohio. The announcement, made on Wednesday, April 30, marks a big shift for Hogan, transitioning from his storied skilled wrestling profession to selling professional, aggressive freestyle wrestling with a give attention to offering elite athletes knowledgeable platform.

Hogan, a WWE Corridor of Famer identified for headlining eight of the primary 9 WrestMania occasions and main the New World Order (nWo) in World Championship Wrestling (WCW), will function RAF’s commissioner. Bischoff, former WCW Senior Vice President and nWo creator, is the chief media officer, whereas Martinez, who has coached UFC stars like Jon Jones and Holly Holm, is the chief working officer. The league goals to mix the depth of Olympic-style freestyle wrestling with leisure components harking back to skilled wrestling, drawing comparisons to actuality TV codecs like The Voice. “By the point these wrestlers come out, you’re going to be vested in these athletes,” Hogan instructed TMZ Sports activities, emphasizing the league’s give attention to showcasing rivals’ backgrounds to construct fan engagement.

The inspiration for RAF got here after Hogan watched Oklahoma State’s Wyatt Hendrickson defeat Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson on the NCAA Division I wrestling championships in March 2025. Hendrickson’s dramatic late takedown, adopted by his salute to President Donald Trump, satisfied Hogan that freestyle wrestling was poised for mainstream attraction. “After I noticed our President hug him, I went, OK, we’re on level, we’re able to go,” Hogan instructed the Related Press. He has expressed hope that Trump will attend RAF’s inaugural occasion, stating to TMZ Sports activities that he plans to personally invite the President.

Not like scripted skilled wrestling, RAF will function unscripted matches throughout eight males’s and 4 ladies’s weight lessons, with an emphasis on “impeccable integrity” in competitors, as Hogan instructed The Hollywood Reporter. The league has secured commitments from high-profile athletes, together with 2024 Olympic silver medalist Kennedy Blades, who will anchor the ladies’s division, in addition to Olympians Zahid Valencia and Ben Askren for the lads’s aspect. Hogan hinted at potential participation from Hendrickson and Steveson, with a potential rematch being “on the radar.”

RAF is backed by vital monetary help, together with Left Lane Capital, which additionally funds progressive sports activities ventures like Shaun White’s Snow League, and Cassius, an early-stage know-how investor. Hogan’s Actual American Beer, a co-sponsor of WWE’s Monday Night time Uncooked, serves because the title sponsor. The league has raised “thousands and thousands” of {dollars}, in response to enterprise companion Chad Bronstein, and is actively looking for a media deal, with Bischoff aiming to safe a streaming or broadcast platform inside six weeks.

Hogan emphasised that RAF isn’t a competitor to WWE, noting their partnership by Actual American Beer. “WWE is worked up about what we’re doing,” he instructed Sports activities Enterprise Journal. The league will adhere to NCAA laws, permitting faculty athletes to take part by identify, picture, and likeness (NIL) offers with out interfering with nationwide or worldwide competitions.

Public response on X has been combined. Supporters like @brotalklive praised RAF’s “actual payouts, huge personalities & a TV-ready format,” whereas @WNSource known as it a “daring new league mixing elite-level freestyle athletes and show-stopping leisure.” Nevertheless, critics expressed skepticism, with @WayneLBlack1 questioning Hogan’s involvement as a result of previous controversies, together with his 2015 WWE dismissal over racist remarks, and @GoodMicWork dismissing the “Actual American” branding as off-putting.

RAF’s launch comes at a time of rising wrestling participation, with the Nationwide Federation of Excessive Colleges reporting report numbers for girls and boys in 2023 and 2024. Hogan and Bischoff purpose to capitalize on this pattern, providing wrestlers knowledgeable profession path that has traditionally been absent in freestyle wrestling. “These are distinctive athletes,” Hogan instructed Fox Information Digital. “This can be a means for me to leap again in, get off the sidelines, and be a part of one thing actual with athletes who’re championship-caliber.”

As RAF prepares for its debut, the wrestling world watches carefully to see if Hogan’s charisma and Bischoff’s promotional experience can elevate freestyle wrestling to new heights. With plans for added occasions in September and October, RAF is poised to redefine the game’s panorama, mixing athletic authenticity with leisure aptitude.

Sources: Related Press, TMZ Sports activities, The Hollywood Reporter, Sports activities Enterprise Journal, Fox Information, Wrestling Inc., NTD, POST Wrestling