RAF 13
Upcoming 2026 wrestling event
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
RAF 13: Covington vs. Muhammad is an upcoming freestyle wrestling event produced by the Real American Freestyle (RAF) promotion that is scheduled to take place on September 18, 2026, at the Watsco Center in Miami, Florida.[1][2][3][4]
| RAF 13: Covington vs. Muhammad | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
The poster for RAF 13: Covington vs. Muhammad | ||||
| Promotion | Real American Freestyle | |||
| Date | September 18, 2026 | |||
| Venue | Watsco Center | |||
| City | Miami, Florida | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background
RAF returns to Miami for the first time since RAF 05 in January 2026.
A RAF Cruiserweight Crossover Championship bout between current champion Colby Covington (also former interim UFC Welterweight Champion) and former UFC Welterweight Champion Belal Muhammad is scheduled to headline the event.[5] The bout was originally scheduled for RAF 12 on August 22, 2026, but was shifted to headline this event due to scheduling changes within the promotion.[6][7]
A catchweight bout between former UFC Middleweight Champion Khamzat Chimaev and former UFC Middleweight Championship challenger Gilbert Burns is scheduled to serve as the co-main event.[8] They previously fought in mixed martial arts at UFC 273, a bout which many media outlets, including UFC CEO Dana White, called "Fight of the Year." Chimaev won that contest by unanimous decision.[9][10]
Four other championship bouts are scheduled to take place at the event:
- A RAF Heavyweight Championship bout between reigning champion Wyatt Hendrickson and Greg Kerkvliet.[11] Hendrickson defeated Kerkvliet in April 2026 at the 2026 US Open National Championships via technical fall, but previously lost to Kerkvliet at the 2024 US Olympic Team Trials. Furthermore, Hendrickson and Kerkvliet also met twice in college, with the pair splitting those matches as well.[11]
- A RAF Middleweight Championship bout between current champion Jason Nolf and Julian Ramirez. Nolf previously defeated Ramirez by technical fall in April 2023 at the "2023 US Open National Championships".
- A RAF Featherweight Crossover Championship bout for the inaugural title between Johnni DiJulius and Cayden Henschel.
- A RAF Women's Middleweight Championship bout between current champion Kennedy Blades and Diana Avsaragova. They previously was scheduled to meet at RAF 12, but Avsaragova withdrew.
A catchweight bout between Larry Wheels and Michael Holston was originally scheduled for this event. However, Wheels withdrew for undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Keelon "Mugzy" Jimison.[12]
Fight card
| Main card | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Cruiserweight |  Colby Covington (c) |
vs. |  Belal Muhammad |
[a] | |||
| Catchweight |  Khamzat Chimaev |
vs. |  Gilbert Burns |
||||
| Catchweight | Michael Holston |
vs. | Keelon Jimison |
||||
| Heavyweight | Wyatt Hendrickson (c) |
vs. | Greg Kerkvliet |
[b] | |||
| Catchweight | Luke Rockhold |
vs. | Joe Pyfer |
||||
| Welterweight | Michael Caliendo |
vs. |  Timur Bizhoev |
||||
| Lightweight |  Haji Aliyev |
vs. | Jacori Teemer |
||||
| Cruiserweight |  Georgios Kougioumtsidis |
vs. | Chance Marsteller |
||||
| Middleweight | Jason Nolf (c) |
vs. | Julian Ramirez |
[c] | |||
| Featherweight | Johnni DiJulius |
vs. | Cayden Henschel |
[d] | |||
| Women's Middleweight | Kennedy Blades (c) |
vs. | Diana Avsaragova |
[e] | |||
- For the RAF Heavyweight Championship.
- For the RAF Middleweight Championship.
- For the inaugural RAF Featherweight Crossover Championship.
