RAF chief Chad Bronstein: ‘Wrestling has never had anything like this’

The man behind Real American Freestyle (RAF) did so with one goal in mind: to transform wrestling into a professional sport.

He is doing so with the help of industry titans who know exactly what it takes to cut through to a mainstream audience. UFC stars are also helping drive its growth; Abu Dhabi is central to the organisation’s ambitions, he says.

Chad Bronstein did not set out to change the world of wrestling. In fact, for a period of his life, he had largely left the sport behind.

Bronstein wrestled in high school before stepping into the world of business and entrepreneurship. It was his son who brought him back to the wrestling mat.

His eldest son began wrestling at the age of six. At the time, Bronstein and his wife were expecting their second child, but a complicated pregnancy meant the family spent months in hospital.

“I took my son to wrestle because we were in the hospital for three months, and that kind of brought me back into the sport and why I love it,” Bronstein tells The National at the Yas Hilton hotel.

In retrospect, Bronstein said it was the genesis that would eventually lead to the creation of RAF, a professional wrestling organisation that has quickly attracted some of the biggest names in the sport as well as stars from mixed martial arts.

That time watching his son in wrestling gyms was well spent, and it led to Bronstein bringing together a group of people who shared his vision.

Among them were wrestling and entertainment figures Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff, along with renowned wrestling coach Izzy Martinez. The idea was to create something that could give wrestling a commercial platform while retaining its competitive integrity.

“We just went fast,” Bronstein says of RAF’s development. “We are here. It's like 18 months of events later, but it's taken off. Wrestling has never had anything like this.”

Middle East debut

RAF is now preparing for its Middle East debut in Abu Dhabi at Etihad Arena this Saturday, the latest step in an expansion that has already taken the organisation to markets including Georgia and Russia. The event is part of a five-year partnership with the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi and the UAE Wrestling Federation.

For Bronstein, the ambition goes beyond staging wrestling events and attracting familiar names. At its core, RAF is an attempt to address a long-standing problem in the sport: how to make a living from being one of the world's best wrestlers.

The distinction between amateur and professional wrestling is one Bronstein believes needs challenging. The athletes competing for RAF include Olympians and world champions, many of whom have historically struggled to earn a sustainable income from their sport.

“Technically, it's amateur, but you've got the best wrestlers in the world, and you're calling them amateurs,” he says. “They are Olympians and everything else. We just gave it the stage that allowed the best wrestlers to have the opportunities that you do when you play football or tennis or the NBA or NFL.”

01:52

Khamzat Chimaev ready to 'smash someone' at RAF Abu Dhabi

The financial proposition is central to RAF's model. Bronstein won’t be pinned down on a number he pays his athletes, but points to American wrestler Kyle Dake, who was involved from the organisation's early days, as an example of what it hopes to achieve.

“He was making very little money as an Olympian. Now, if you talk to him, he's making a great living. He can wrestle full-time and support himself and his family, no problem.”

RAF, he says, is an organisation that helps wrestlers dedicate themselves to their craft without worrying about how they will pay the bills.

“It's what a professional athlete deserves. When you get drafted in the NFL, you get a good six-figure salary. RAF is giving the best athletes that same ability.”

Biggest challenges

One of the biggest challenges was making the sport more accessible to a wider audience. Traditional wrestling has a devoted following, but even the most ardent fan will admit it lacks pizzazz.

Bronstein realised that presenting wrestling in its traditional form was not going to attract new eyeballs. Instead, it looked beyond the sport itself for inspiration, drawing on the pomp and pageantry and entertainment associated with other sports.

Show caption: RAF CEO Chad Bronstein at the Yas Hilton hotel in Abu Dhabi.…

Eric Bischoff, who runs RAF's production, is better known for his involvement in wrestling entertainment. He previously led WCW and has been involved in the creation of some of the sport's most recognisable characters, from Hollywood Hogan to the NWO.

Bronstein says the aim is not to copy one particular organisation but to take the best ingredients from each and apply them to the RAF stew.

“Wrestling is the oldest sport in the world, so the reason why it didn't succeed is because you can't just create it with a purist mindset,” he says.

“I love wrestling, but if we just created it like Izzy and me and other people love watching wrestling, it doesn't mean everyone else wants to watch it.

“In wrestling, you're taught discipline and not to celebrate. So if you and I wrestle and I beat you, I'm just getting off the mat.

“What we did was take entertainment in general and borrow from a lot of different sports to make it the success story it is today.”

MMA crossover

The early journey has not been without its challenges. Asked how he felt when he first launched RAF, Bronstein remembers the “pins and needles” he felt surrounding the first event in Cleveland, Ohio, where he grew up and where wrestling has a strong following.

That event went well, encouraging Bronstein that he had stumbled onto something. The second event didn’t go quite as well.

“The first event was great. Then we went to the second event, and it was OK. So we had to learn a lot,” he says. “The second event was like the first-event honeymoon. The second event was like, ‘OK, we've got a lot to fix.’”

That refinement has expanded to combine leading wrestlers with established MMA fighters, a crossover that Bronstein believes benefits both sides.

The organisation has developed a close relationship with the UFC, particularly through Hunter Campbell, the promotion's chief business officer. He has some skin in the game as well, managing former women’s UFC bantamweight champion Julianna Pena.

Show caption: Merab Dvalishvili, right, and Henry Cejudo, are both former …

Bronstein insists RAF and UFC are not rivals. The relationship, he says, is complementary. RAF gives MMA fighters an opportunity to compete in wrestling between fights, while the presence of recognisable UFC names on RAF cards introduces its own athletes to a different audience.

“We've had a great relationship with them. Zero bad blood, and we're not competition, so it works out well,” he says.

“They built the biggest brand in the world for MMA, and I think having their guys active only helps too. It's great cross-promotion for both sides.”

Khamzat Chimaev

That crossover is particularly evident in Abu Dhabi, where Khamzat Chimaev, now a naturalised UAE citizen, headlines. He was originally scheduled to wrestle Colby Covington until injury forced the American to withdraw.

Needing a big-name replacement, RAF again turned to the UFC. Former middleweight champion Chris Weidman agreed to step in as Covington’s replacement.

“He's a two-time All-American, and he's not going to be easy for Chimaev. It's going to be a good match.”

Though Chimaev's involvement in headlining RAF Abu Dhabi seemed a no-brainer, given his wrestling prowess and popularity both in the UAE and across the wider Muslim world, Bronstein admits the Chechen-born fighter was not initially an obvious signing.

The organisation was introduced to Chimaev and his manager, Jonathon “Sweep” Michael, through American wrestler Pat Downey. Initially, Bronstein was given little reason to believe a deal would happen.

It was only later, as RAF began securing other high-profile names, that the opportunity emerged.

“We didn't know he was going to wrestle for us. It wasn't until Arman [Tsarukyan] came onto the stage, and then we worked with Sweep to get both of them,” he says.

Bronstein likened Chimaev to the UAE’s version of “Michael Jordan”, adding it was a “great opportunity” to have him headline in the UAE capital.

“Everyone's very excited about that,” he adds.

Who else could join RAF?

The emirate is an important part of RAF's expansion strategy. The five-year partnership gives the organisation a platform from which to establish itself in the region.

“Abu Dhabi, they put their money where their mouth is. They love sport. What they've done and how they've supported us has been incredible,” he says.

“Everything we do is together. My team and their team, and it's been awesome.”

One name he would particularly like to bring into RAF is Georges St-Pierre, the former UFC welterweight and middleweight champion who had held the record for most takedowns in the organisation’s history before Merab Dvalishvili surpassed him.

Bronstein says he regularly messages the Canadian to persuade him to compete.

“I think he's going to come wrestle. He loves wrestling, and it's got to be on his time when he feels it's healthy and ready to go.

“I think it's only a matter of time. He's following it, and I think he loves and respects what we're doing.”

To someone who grew up in wrestling, the opportunity to bring together the biggest names from different disciplines is a major part of the appeal.

“You get the best of both worlds,” Bronstein says. “You get the biggest UFC and MMA stars and the biggest wrestling stars on one card.”

It is an ambitious pitch for a sport that has traditionally struggled to offer its leading athletes the financial rewards and mainstream exposure enjoyed elsewhere.

Bronstein's belief is that the ingredients have always been there. RAF, he hopes, can finally provide the stage.