Real American Freestyle (RAF) adds Hendrickson to Roster

Real American Freestyle (RAF) just announced their latest signing and it’s a big one. The top big man from the 2025 NCAA Championships - Wyatt Hendrickson. Hendrickson made national headlines with his stunning upset of two-time Hodge Trophy winner and Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson. For his work in the 2024-25 campaign, Hendrickson was awarded this year’s Hodge Trophy, himself. 

Hendrickson wrestled for four years at the Air Force Academy and amassed an 88-11 record and earned All-American honors twice - finishing third in 2023 and 2024. 

Unable to use his final year of eligibility wrestling for the Air Force, Hendrickson was given a special exemption and transferred to Oklahoma State University. 

During his year in Stillwater, Hendrickson compiled a 27-0 record and earned bonus points in over 81% of those contests. Along the way, he tallied 13 falls. Prior to the NCAA Championships in Philadelphia, Hendrickson won his third Big 12 Championship. In the regular season, he led OSU to a team title at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. He chipped in with three falls and a tech. 

After his collegiate career concluded, Hendrickson directed his focus back toward freestyle wrestling. At the US Open, Hendrickson lapped the field - outscoring the opposition 45-7 on his way to a title. That tournament win gave Hendrickson an automatic berth in Final X on June 14th, where he’ll face Trent Hillger - an opponent he downed 10-4 at the Open. 

Hendrickson is no stranger to success on the freestyle circuit. In 2023, Hendrickson won a U23 world championship and two years earlier he wrestled for a bronze medal at the U20 World Championships. After winning the 2025 Open, Hendrickson traveled to the Pan-American Championship and crushed the opposition, on the way to a gold medal. 

Hendrickson is the latest name to commit to an already-loaded RAF roster. The RAF site currently features a roster that includes Olympic gold medalists Kyle Snyder and Kennedy Blades, Olympic medalists Kyle Dake and Aaron Brooks, Olympian and former MMA star Ben Askren, world medalist Zahid Valencia, along with rising stars David Carr and Trent Hidlay. 

RAF’s inaugural event will take place on August 30th from Cleveland, Ohio. More information about tickets and an actual card will be found here as the information is released.