Following the official unveiling of Real American Freestyle Wrestling (RAF) earlier this week, wrestling icon Hulk Hogan offered more details about the league’s philosophy on creating compelling talent. In an interview with Adam’s Apple, Hogan revealed that RAF is moving away from the heavily scripted nature of mainstream pro wrestling.
“I have to tell you, we’re not doing this with 25 writers in the back telling you what to be, how to act, or what catchphrase to say,” Hogan explained. “We’re going real organic with these guys.”
RAF, the brainchild of Hogan alongside Eric Bischoff—who serves as Chief Media Officer—and renowned wrestling coach Izzy Martinez in the role of Chief Operating Officer, seeks to fuse the athletic authenticity of freestyle amateur wrestling with the entertainment-driven elements of professional wrestling.
While initially skeptical about whether amateur athletes could deliver the charisma expected in sports entertainment, Hogan shared that his doubts were quickly put to rest after meeting the talent.
“The thing I worried about was with these amateur wrestlers—do they have the swag? Do they know how to bring an edge to their real personality?” Hogan admitted. “But after I met with them, they all had that Conor McGregor swag. They’ve all watched TV, they’ve seen the promos, they know about branding. These kids are really, really smart.”
RAF’s first official event is scheduled to take place on August 30th in Cleveland, marking the company’s live debut. Additional announcements are expected in the coming weeks.
