Kyle Snyder open to wrestling Brock Lesnar or Josh Hokit at RAF events

Olympic heavyweight wrestling champion Kyle Snyder has expressed genuine interest in facing either former UFC and WWE star Brock Lesnar or rising UFC heavyweight Josh Hokit at a future Real American Freestyle (RAF) event, telling MMA Fighting that both matchups could serve as major promotional vehicles for the sport.

Snyder, preparing for his third consecutive RAF appearance alongside his push to qualify for the wrestling World Championships at Final X, acknowledged that a Lesnar bout was not something he had previously considered until it was raised by others. “I didn’t even think about this either but somebody brought it up — Brock Lesnar,” Snyder said. “I mean Brock’s pretty old so I don’t know about that either. There’s a couple of good wrestlers in the UFC that I’d wrestle if they wanted to.”

Lesnar, now 48, is a former NCAA heavyweight champion and UFC heavyweight champion who has not competed in wrestling for years, though he has trained alongside Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson given their shared ties to the University of Minnesota. He also famously challenged fellow Olympic gold medalist Kurt Angle to an impromptu match during their overlapping time in WWE.

Snyder was candid about the nature such a matchup would take. “That would just be a match strictly for the fans, something interesting for them,” he said. “Obviously, Brock’s a big, big star so I’d be interested in that just for the way that it would promote the sport. But I think Brock doesn’t have to wrestle me for that to help wrestling and RAF. He could wrestle anybody and it would bring a lot of people to the sport. I hope he does.”

The second name put to Snyder was Josh Hokit, the outspoken UFC heavyweight who wrestled at Fresno State and earned All-American honours before a stint in the NFL. Hokit is currently scheduled to face Derrick Lewis at the UFC White House card after a widely praised performance against Curtis Blaydes in his previous outing. RAF has reportedly shown interest in working with Hokit, and Snyder was receptive. “I like it. I think it’s funny,” Snyder said of Hokit’s larger-than-life persona.

Snyder has previously stated that his primary focus is competing against the best wrestlers in the world, but his comments suggest RAF’s model — which regularly features crossover matchups with fighters from organisations such as the UFC — has broadened his thinking about what constitutes a worthwhile contest. Whether Lesnar has any interest in returning to competitive wrestling remains unknown.