Hendrickson to headline wrestling event as Hulk Hogan's venture continues after his death
RAF01, the company's inaugural event, will go on as planned at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland about a month after commissioner Hulk Hogan 's death. Chad Bronstein, Real American Freestyle's CEO and co-founder, said that's the way Hogan would have wanted it.
'From day one, he threw his weight behind this league,' Bronstein said of Hogan in a statement. 'He met with athletes. He watched tape, shared stories and showed up like only he could. RAF was personal to him, something bigger than all of us. This league is part of his legacy, and we intend to honor it.'
Hendrickson beat Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson to win the 285-pound national title at the NCAA Division I wrestling championships in March. Hendrickson's dramatic late takedown in the final gave the Oklahoma State heavyweight the 5-4 win, closed out a 27-0 season and ended Steveson's win streak at 70 matches. Hendrickson later won the Hodge Trophy as the nation's top men's college wrestler.
Hogan was a fan of Hendrickson's and believed he embodied the spirit of Real American Freestyle. Hendrickson is an Air Force second lieutenant who celebrated with a United States flag after he defeated Steveson.
Hendrickson's opponent was the final piece to complete the card. Elders was the African Games champion at 97 kilograms in 2024 and qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics in that weight class.
Other men's matchups include Bo Nickal vs. Jacob Cardenas; Yianni Diakomihalis vs. Bajrang Punia; Darrion Caldwell vs. Real Woods; and Austin Gomez vs. Lance Palmer. Women's matches scheduled are: Kennedy Blades vs. Alejandra Rivera; and Sarah Hildebrandt vs. Zeltzin Hernandez.
The event will be streamed on FOX Nation.
___
AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/sports
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
4 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Ohio State's QB competition between Julian Sayin and Lincoln Kienholz remains too close to call
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — After the first quarter of Ohio State's preseason practices, the competition between Julian Sayin and Lincoln Kienholz for the starting quarterback spot remains too close to call. 'The competition continues,' coach Ryan Day said. 'They both have had good moments and moments where they're growing. I will say I've been pleased with the progress. It's going to go right down to the wire. 'The positives of having a competition is that you know every day you got to bring it. The guys are always on edge, they're uncomfortable, they're working at it. I think that's healthy for the entire building.' A quarterback competition the season after winning the College Football Playoff championship is routine at Ohio State. The circumstances, though, are different. In 2015, Cardale Jones and J.T. Barrett both had experience as they battled. Jones led the Buckeyes to the title when he started the Big Ten championship and both CFP games after Barrett broke his ankle against Michigan. Sayin and Kienholz have a combined 34 pass attempts and 90 college snaps. They are competing to replace Will Howard, who transferred from Kansas State and threw for a Big Ten-high 4,010 yards and 35 touchdowns in leading the Buckeyes to their sixth national title. Quarterbacks coach Billy Fessler is looking for consistency, especially as the Buckeyes start getting more into situational scenarios during practices the next two weeks. 'We have to be great on third down and in the red zone. That's where quarterbacks make their money,' Fessler said. 'We're in a spot where we're getting more and more of those situations every day. So it's an opportunity for those guys to go out and compete.' Sayin has shown better arm strength, though Keinholz has more athleticism after playing three sports in high school. Sayin originally committed to Alabama as the top-rated quarterback in the Class of 2024 and was taking classes when Nick Saban retired. Sayin then entered the transfer portal last spring and came to Ohio State. He played in four games, including the CFP first-round contest against Tennessee, and was 5 for 12 for 84 yards and one touchdown while taking 27 snaps. The sophomore is the slight favorite to emerge as the starter for the Aug. 30 opener against Texas, but he hasn't paid any attention to the outside hype. 'I feel like I'm developing in my footwork accuracy and mechanics. It's just all about building confidence. You make a great play, you start to build that confidence,' Sayin said. The last snaps Kienholz took in a game were in the 2023 Cotton Bowl against Missouri after starter Devin Brown was injured in the first half. Keinholz struggled, as he completed only six of 17 passes for 86 yards. However, the junior had a great offseason and was one of eight Ohio State players named an Iron Buckeye, which goes to players who excel during offseason workouts. 'As a freshman going in there, I didn't really know a whole lot. I didn't really know how protections worked and I mean, now that's something that I feel like I'm pretty good at, and I go out and and execute that well,' Keinholz said. 'I've been in the offense for three years now, so it's something that I think just more time, more reps and film study, it's helped me get better.' Freshman Tavien St. Clair is also getting snaps, but is still getting up to speed with the offense. He did come in as an early enrollee and participated in spring practices. Besides quarterback, Day and the coaching staff are looking for some of the positions to get an established starting group toward the end of the week. Day used a phrase from safeties coach Matt Guerrieri in comparing this week to the third round of a golf tournament, which is typically called moving day. 'This is moving week. We want to have our identity and it doesn't need to be in stone, but the players can tell us what we're doing and what our identity is coming out of this week,' Day said. ___ AP college football: and
Vancouver Sun
9 minutes ago
- Vancouver Sun
Opinion: The Mile of the Century at Vancouver's Empire Stadium
On Aug. 7, 1954, Vancouver was the centre of the athletics universe. For the first time in history, two men who had broken four minutes running a mile — Englishman Roger Bannister and Australian John Landy — would meet at that distance on the track. In fact, at the time, they were the only two men in history to have broken the magical, and long-thought impossible, barrier. Bannister had famously struck first, running 3:59.4 on May 6, 1954, on his home track at Oxford. Paced by his friends Chris Brasher and Chris Chataway, in an otherwise low-key athletics competition, sparsely attended, Bannister had overcome wet and windy conditions and shocked the sporting world with his achievement. A daily roundup of Opinion pieces from the Sun and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Informed Opinion will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Many had thought Landy would be the first to get there. He had seemingly come out of nowhere in 1952 to run 4:02.1, the third-fastest time in history. Over the next two years he ran 4:02 five more times, usually against local competition, but couldn't overcome the 4:00 barrier. But six weeks after Bannister's feat, Landy delivered another shock, to Bannister and to the athletics world, running a 3:57.9 (officially rounded up to 3:58) in Turku, Finland, shattering Bannister's mark by a second and a half. The stage was set for a showdown, and the world wouldn't have long to wait. Less than three weeks, in fact. The scene was Vancouver's spanking-new Empire Stadium. The event was the British Empire and Commonwealth Games. The event organizers and the press couldn't believe their luck — the first man to break four minutes against the man who had smashed his record. Inevitably, the race was billed as 'The Mile of the Century.' The pre-race stories and hype almost wrote themselves. Bannister and Landy were pure amateurs, running and competing for the love of sport and competition. Both were 'aw shucks' types — hardworking, humble, educated and articulate. And driven. It was another era. Both runners would have short careers, as they needed to get on with life and make a living. Vancouver would be one of Bannister's final races before beginning his career as a neurologist — he hung up his spikes at the end of the year. Landy would hang on through the Melbourne Olympics in 1956 then he, too, would begin his long professional life, working on land stewardship, writing books, and entering politics. But we're getting ahead of ourselves. It was another era in other ways as well. The stadium track was cinders, a far cry from, and a lot slower than, today's rubber tracks. Their running shoes were lightweight leather spikes and again, much slower than today's kangaroo-like metal plated shoes that practically catapult runners and can be worth a full second per lap. And although both Bannister and Landy were highly intelligent and interested in the science of sport, both essentially coached themselves according to what they thought they needed, and crammed workouts into the available time between hospital shifts and university classes. On Aug. 7, 35,000 spectators crammed Empire Stadium to watch the show. The race was a reflection of the runners' personalities — Landy took the pace out, always preferring to lead while Bannister tried to stay close, waiting to unleash his famous, withering kick. At one point, Landy led by 10 metres, but Bannister closed the gap on the third lap. Around the last turn Landy inexplicably looked for Bannister over his left (inside) shoulder. Bannister simultaneously swept by Landy on the outside, and that was all she wrote. Taken by surprise, Landy couldn't catch Bannister, who sprinted home in 3:58.8 — the fastest time of his career — and Landy followed in 3:59.6. It was the first time two men had broken four minutes in the same race. The Mile of the Century could have set the stage for the Rivalry of the Century but, as noted, as amateurs, both men needed to get on with life. The Vancouver race was the only time they would meet in a major competition. (They had run against each other in a heat of the 1,500 at the 1952 Olympics, but Landy, then a relative unknown, didn't qualify for the next round.) 1954 was a long time ago, and in athletics, a very long time ago indeed. The notion of two gentlemen (which they both most assuredly were, on and off the track) snatching workouts when they could, supporting themselves with the help of their families, and running for the pure enjoyment and, yes, glory of it all, seems quaint to us. But at the time, the Mile of the Century was just that, one of the most anticipated showdowns over the mile distance before or since. And our heroes didn't disappoint. Thomas Ratcliffe is an award-winning documentary filmmaker. His films include Bannister: Everest on the Track; James Nealon is a writer and retired diplomat whose overseas postings included deputy at the U.S. embassy in Ottawa and U.S. ambassador to Honduras.
Winnipeg Free Press
34 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Dominic Smith hits go-ahead double in 9th as Giants rally for 4-2 win over Pirates
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Dominic Smith hit a go-ahead double in the ninth inning, and the San Francisco Giants rallied for a 4-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday. Jung Hoo Lee hit a one-out double down the right-field line off Dennis Santana (3-4). Smith, pinch hitting for Christian Koss, brought Lee in with another double to right to make it 3-2 and Patrick Bailey extended the lead with an RBI single. Giants reliever Ryan Walker (4-4) struck out the side in the eighth, including Oneil Cruz with two on and two outs. Randy Rodríguez pitched a perfect ninth for his third save. In the top half, Isaac Mattson gave up a leadoff single to Bailey, a one-out single to Rafael Devers and another single to Willy Adames before departing with the bases loaded. Matt Chapman tied it with a sacrifice fly. Nick Gonzales put the Pirates ahead with a two-out single to left in the first. Jerar Encarnacion tied it in the fifth with a 442-foot drive to left off a fastball from Andrew Heaney, his second home run of the season after hitting one in an 8-1 win Tuesday. Isiah Kiner-Falefa scored on Tommy Pham's sacrifice in the fifth, giving the Pirates back the lead. Heaney, who was tagged for one run and two hits in 4 2/3 innings, had retired 12 straight batters since letting the first two reach. Heliot Ramos started the first inning with a first-pitch single, extending his on-base streak to a career-high 20 games, before Devers was hit by a pitch. Robbie Ray struck out eight in six innings for San Francisco, giving up two runs and six hits. Key moment Cruz hit for Joey Bart in the eighth and struck out on a sinker Walker left over the heart of the plate. Key stat Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. Smith extended his hitting streak to 11 games, tying a career-best stretch from Sept. 4-17, 2020, while with the Mets. Up next The Giants head home to open a three-game series against the Washington Nationals on Friday. The Pirates have RHP Paul Skenes (6-8, 2.02 ERA) on the mound Thursday to start a four-game home set against Cincinnati. RHP Brady Singer (9-8, 4.36 ERA) will start for the Reds. ___ AP MLB:
