Two New Champions Crowned in Surprising RAF 03 Card

The third installment of Real American Freestyle (RAF 03) proved to have more twists and turns and drama than its two predecessors. Wrestling in front of a rabid crowd of over 5,000 at Chicago’s Wintrust Arena, the organization handed out a championship belt to one of the hometown heroes, experienced its first title change, and presented the fanbase with some storylines for future cards.

Local stars, the Gomez siblings, Alexis and Austin, both picked up wins on the night. Alexis used a late throw to defeat US Open finalist Bella Mira, an opponent who beat her via technical fall just two weeks earlier. Austin cruised past another Austin from Illinois - O’Connor, a former two-time national champion at North Carolina. Gomez’s 9-1 win over O’Connor set the stage for a title match with current lightweight champion Yianni Diakomihalis.

Prior to the event, it was assumed that Diakomihalis would meet the Gomez/O’Connor winner on the RAF 04 card in Fishers, Indiana, on December 20th.

Sandwiched between the Gomez’s matches was a featherweight championship clash between Real Woods and Jordan Oliver. The 2025 world bronze medalist, Woods, took on Jordan Oliver, a mainstay at the top of the domestic ladder for over the last decade. Woods struck early with a quick single leg and was unable to finish, but got a pushout for the bout’s first point. Woods held a slim 2-1 lead in the waning seconds of the contest and tried to defend an Oliver attack. Oliver was able to push Woods out of bounds as the clock expired; however, there was some debate as to whether or not Woods was grounded. The call stood and Oliver was deemed the winner and new champion. It marked the first transition of a championship belt in RAF history.

Local favorite and Olympic silver medalist, Kennedy Blades, made her long-awaited RAF debut in a title contest versus Mexico’s Alejandra Rivera. The two were supposed to meet on the RAF 01 card; however, Blades was pulled due to NCAA eligibility concerns. Saturday night’s match was able about Blades. She converted five takedowns in her 11-0 tech. Blades showed no interest in par terre turns, she was likely looking for the opportunity to put an emphatic stamp on the match with a high-amplitude finish or throw. Though she wasn’t able to make a highlight reel-worthy finish, she did dominate and was awarded the organization’s women’s featherweight belt.

The biggest upset of the evening took place at the bantamweight class as Ukrainian Andriy Yatsenko pinned Olympic silver medalist Spencer Lee with one second remaining in their match. Lee jumped out to an early lead, but Yatsenko proved to be dangerous with his counters for exposure. Trailing 9-4 with about :30 left in the bout, Yatsenko used an outside trip to throw Lee to his back. The hold was only worth four points, so anything short of a fall would still result in a Lee victory. Finally, with just a second left in the bout, the official granted Yatsenko the fall.

Perhaps unexpectedly, some of the best back-and-forth action came as 2024 Olympic gold medalist Akhmed Tazhudinov took on three-time All-American Tony Cassioppi. The American got on the scoreboard first and, in the second period, pulled within a point after a gut wrench. As he was trying to attempt another, and take the lead, Tazhudinov stepped over and caught Cassioppi on his back. Cassioppi wasn’t able to escape and a fall was awarded for Tazhudinov.

In the main event, MMA stars Michael Chandler and Chad Mendes returned to their wrestling roots. The key sequence came late in the first period as Mendes tried a cement mixer, one of his favorite moves. Chandler stopped the hold and was able to hit one of his own, to the opposite side, for two exposure points. That accounted for the only two-point hold of the match in Chandler’s 4-1 victory.

Also garnering wins on the night were Patrick Downey (11-0 over Joaquin Buckley), Cayden Henschel (11-0 over Clay Guida), and Bo Bassett (via first-period fall over Darrion Caldwell).

At one point, RAF co-founder Eric Bischoff, appeared with Magomedkhabib Kadimagomedov, a Russian who represents Belarus on the international scene. Kadimagomedov said he wanted “his” championship belt from Kyle Dake and reminded the American about his 10-0 win at the 2020(1) Olympic Games. It appears as if the pair will compete on the RAF 05 show, which co-founder Chad Bronstein stated will be held in the NHL’s Florida Panthers Amaret Bank Arena on January 10th in the pre-match presser.

Also, a light heavyweight championship bout between Bo Nickal and wrestling/MMA star Yoel Romero was added to an already-stacked RAF 04 card.

Speaking of MMA, current UFC star Belal Muhammad was brought in front of the crowd to confirm his bout on RAF 04 with world team member David Carr. 
 

Full results from RAF 03

Middleweight: Michael Chandler over Chad Mendes (4-1)

Women’s Featherweight Championship: Kennedy Blades over Alejandra Rivera (11-0)

Heavyweight: Akhmend Tazhudinov over Tony Cassioppi (Fall 3:39)

Bantamweight: Andriy Yatsenko over Spencer Lee (Fall 5:59)

Lightweight: Austin Gomez over Austin O’Connor (9-1)

Featherweight Championship: Jordan Oliver over Real Woods (2-2)

165 lb Catchweight: Cayden Henschel over Clay Guida (11-0)

Light Heavyweight: Patrick Downey over Joaquin Buckley (11-0)

Women’s Featherweight: Alexis Gomez over Bella Mir (7-3)

Featherweight: Bo Bassett over Darrion Caldwell (Fall 1:00)