On April 18, the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, PA will play host to RAF 08: Dvalishvili vs. Cejudo. This is a huge event for the budding young promotion and a must-watch for any true combat sports fans.
What is RAF and how does it work?
The freestyle wrestling organization was founded nearly a year ago in April 2025 by Chad Bronstein, Terri Francis, and professional wrestling icons Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan, the latter of whom passed away last August. RAF brings together a wide range of competitors, including collegiate and Olympic wrestlers, high school wrestlers, and both retired and active MMA fighters, which forms a big part of the excitement leading into RAF 08.
The RAF website explains, in what essentially amounts to a mission statement for its cause: “Real American Freestyle is designed to showcase the purity and drama of wrestling at the highest level. With clear rules, action-oriented scoring and definitive endings, every match promises intensity from start to finish.”
But how exactly do these matches at RAF play out?
In the world of RAF, the action unfolds over three two-minute rounds, with quick 30-second breaks in between. At the end of regulation, the wrestler who boasts the higher score is declared the victor. However, in case of a tie, the winner is chosen based on criteria that emphasizes who scored the last point.
Most RAF contests are decided on points, but other match outcomes include pinfalls, technical falls, disqualifications, or if a wrestler is injured and cannot continue. For more about the scoring rules and the various ways matches can end, visit the official Real American Freestyle website.
RAF 08 main event and co-main event:
The promotion’s eighth numbered card will showcase 12 fights, including two title bouts, with a high-profile debut in the main event. Although it will be the first time these two fighters face off on the RAF mat, the headliner is a rematch from UFC 298, where they previously met in the featured bout of that event. RAF 08 will also feature a co-main event pitting a top pound-for-pound UFC talent who has quickly become a staple at RAF, facing off against an MMA pioneer.
Main Event (Lightweight Bout): Merab Dvalishvili vs. Henry Cejudo
As I briefly mentioned earlier, Real American Freestyle is set to feature one of the UFC’s absolute machines (pun definitely intended) in a main event debut showcase. Former UFC Bantamweight king Merab Dvalishvili will ditch his signature white shorts for a singlet as he takes on a familiar opponent, Henry Cejudo.
Dvalishvili edged out Cejudo in their UFC 298 encounter, winning by unanimous decision with scores of 29-28 across the board. The fight is perhaps best known for a third-round clip where Dvalishvili backed Cejudo up, pushed forward, and lifted “Triple C” to carry him across the Octagon before dumping him to the mat — all while gazing at Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg, who sat at cageside.
Knowing Dvalishvili’s zany personality, both inside and outside the cage, I don’t think there’s a more fitting moniker for him than “The Machine.” The man is absolutely relentless, and his pressure-heavy, endless cardio style has become his signature in the Octagon. In their UFC 298 bout, Dvalishvili won the takedown battle, going 5 of 11 (a 45% takedown accuracy), while Cejudo went just 1 of 7 (just a 14% TD accuracy). Although Dvalishvili gained the upper hand on Cejudo when things were in the cage, the fact that this fight takes place in Cejudo’s wrestling wheelhouse adds a new layer to their matchup.
It’s important to note that Dvalishvili doesn’t have the luxury of pushing Cejudo against the cage to set up takedowns. Sure, he managed to take Cejudo down at times in the center, but MMA wrestling is vastly different from freestyle wrestling. Dvalishvili also can’t rely on striking to set up his takedowns here; he’ll need to adapt by controlling the center, fighting to push Cejudo out of bounds, and embracing the low stance of freestyle.
All things considered, this could very much be looked at as Henry Cejudo’s fight to win. He handled business in his RAF debut against Urijah Faber back in February (more on the “California Kid” shortly), but this remains an extremely tough matchup with Dvalishvili, who is still very much in his combat prime.
I’m expecting that same fast-paced action I’m used to seeing from Dvalishvili in the cage here in RAF. While I don’t want to overlook Cejudo’s decorated resume and wrestling credentials, I believe it’s too difficult to count out “The Machine,” even with a change of combat scenery.
Prediction: Merab Dvalishvili
Co-Main Event (Middleweight Bout): Arman Tsarukyan vs. Urijah Faber
We now move on to the co-headliner of the evening: resident RAF fighter and often MMA bad boy, Arman Tsarukyan, takes on Urijah Faber. Tsarukyan is coming off a victory over Georgio Poullas in the main event of RAF 07, which was a rematch of their controversial RAF 06 encounter. This win keeps the 29-year-old flawless in his RAF tenure so far, for a 3-0 record.
His rivalry with Poullas became quite heated, but now he faces a legend of the sport in Urijah Faber. Interestingly, this pairing wasn’t originally scheduled. Faber was initially set to face Cayden Henschel until it was announced that Tsarukyan would have a quick turnaround from his second bout with Poullas to feature prominently in the next RAF showcase.
With all due respect to the legend and UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber, I honestly can’t see a scenario where this bout doesn’t end with Tsarukyan having his hand raised. Faber is 46 years old, well past his athletic prime, and we should remember that he was already outclassed by Henry Cejudo in his first RAF showcase. Cejudo is much closer to Faber’s fighting weight class and age bracket, and the “California Kid” was still dominated in that matchup.
Arman Tsarukyan, on the other hand, is a stocky lightweight in the prime of his career and one of the elite mixed martial artists in the world today. Even though we’re solely considering the wrestling factor, Tsarukyan has adapted quite well to the world of RAF, and I believe it’s a no-brainer that he can do the same here against Faber.
Prediction: Arman Tsarukyan
RAF 08: The rest of the card
Other fights on the RAF 08: Dvalishvili vs. Cejudo card include (detailed rundown here):
- Light Heavyweight Championship Bout: Kyle Snyder (c) vs. Rizabek Aitmukhan
- Cruiserweight Bout: Zahid Valencia vs. Aeoden Sinclair
- Heavyweight Bout: Anthony Cassioppi vs. Shamil Sharipov
- Women’s Bantamweight Championship Bout: Helen Maroulis (c) vs. Alexis Janiak
- Featherweight Bout: Real Woods vs. Anthony Ashnault
- Middleweight Bout: Jason Nolf vs. Joey Blaze
- Featherweight Bout: Vladimer Khinchegashvili vs. Johnni DiJulius
- Lightweight Bout: Lance Palmer vs. Cayden Henschel
- Featherweight Bout: Jordan Oliver vs. Mike VanBrill
- Bantamweight Bout: Darian Cruz vs. Lucas Byrd
How to watch RAF 08
- Date: April 18, 2026
- Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
- Location: Liacouras Center; Philadelphia, PA
- TV Information: Streaming live exclusively on Fox Nation
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