Russia Pulls Wrestlers From RAF Competition
Russia's freestyle head coach says national-team wrestlers will stop competing in Real American Freestyle after results at the 2026 World Championships.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Wrestling
Russia's freestyle wrestling head coach Khadzhimurat Gatsalov decided to stop national-team wrestlers from competing in Real American Freestyle (RAF), following several losses to American opponents at the 2026 World Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan. RAF CEO Chad Bronstein rejected claims that Russian wrestlers would stop competing in the promotion.
Why it matters
Gatsalov believes RAF competition affected preparation for key athletes, including Ismail Khaniev, Ibragim Kadiev and Abdulrashid Sadulaev. The dispute raises questions about how national-team obligations and private promotions will coexist in international freestyle wrestling.
Russia's men's freestyle team scored 185 points at the 2026 World Championships, nine behind the United States' 194 points. Whether Abdulrashid Sadulaev will compete in his listed November 14 Abu Dhabi bout has not been confirmed.
The players
Khadzhimurat Gatsalov
Russia's freestyle wrestling head coach who made the decision to restrict national-team wrestlers from competing in RAF.
Chad Bronstein
CEO of Real American Freestyle, the wrestling promotion that rejected claims Russian wrestlers would stop competing in it.
Abdulrashid Sadulaev
Russian freestyle wrestler who won bronze at 97kg at the 2026 World Championships and is listed for a November 14 bout in Abu Dhabi.
The details
Gatsalov said the wrestlers were in the mountains building volume and physical conditioning while others prepared for RAF, and he said he will consider second- or third-ranked wrestlers if top wrestlers are not allowed to compete in RAF. Sadulaev, who missed the Russian Championships with an injury, won bronze at 97kg but lost a close match to Kyle Snyder, 4-4 on criteria after a comeback from a 4-1 deficit.
Timeline
The 2026 World Championships were held in Astana, Kazakhstan, and ended on November 1.
On November 2, RAF CEO Chad Bronstein rejected claims that Russian wrestlers would stop competing in the promotion.
Sadulaev is listed for a November 14 bout in Abu Dhabi.
Wrestlers who earn national-team places through the Russian Championships will compete only in coaching-staff-selected ranking events next season.
Season Trajectory
The dispute comes as Real American Freestyle has drawn elite international wrestlers into a privately run US-based promotion, creating friction with national federations that depend on those athletes for world-level results. Russia's decision to limit its wrestlers to federation-selected ranking events next season could shape which athletes compete in the promotion going forward.
Fantasy and tournament followers will need to account for Russian wrestlers being limited to coaching-staff-selected ranking events next season, which could change who appears in international brackets. The November 14 Abu Dhabi bout involving Sadulaev remains a live question for viewers planning to watch.
The takeaway
Watch which national-team wrestlers appear in ranking events next season, since federation selection rules now determine their access to both international competition and private promotions.
What happens next
Sadulaev is listed for a November 14 bout in Abu Dhabi, and Gatsalov plans to have wrestlers compete from the beginning of next season, starting with the Ivan Yarygin tournament.
Further reading
For more on international competition, see our Wrestling coverage.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Times of India.
