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Real American Freestyle brings in extra security after last card ended in chaos
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- Real American Freestyle brings in extra security after last card ended in chaos
Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC
Real American Freestyle officials are determined to prevent another ugly incident this weekend.
UFC star Arman Tsarukyan sparked a fight when he attacked Georgio Poullas after their grappling match at RAF 06 last month.
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Their rematch headlines a card that also includes Colby Covington and Dillon Danis, both of whom have had their share of controversies in the past.
RAF 07 to Increase Security After Recent Incidents
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Ben Askren has confirmed that the wrestling promotion is putting measures in place to avoid any repeat incidents at RAF 07.
The RAF official believes strict referees and extra security will stop Arman Tsarukyan from causing another fiasco this weekend.
"The match was out of control in Tempe. I hope Tampa, I hope it doesn't turn into a fight again, although I think there's a chance of that," Askren said during an interview with MMA Fighting.
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"I know RAF, we've talked about this, there's going to be extra security. We cannot let what happened last time, the chaotic fight, we can't let that happen. We've got to keep it under control.
"I know the referees are going to be coached up and the athletes 'here's what's legal, here's what's illegal.' We're going to call it the way it should be called. Hand jamming to the face is not allowed in international wrestling. You can't do that. So that is a caution and a penalty. You get three cautions, the match is over, and you're disqualified. It's pretty simple."
"We're going to have a wrestling match that is refereed by the rules. It's not going to be loose anymore. We are going to call it. We're going to have extra security. This will not get out of hand. There will not be another brawl.
"Does one of them get disqualified? I can't tell you on that one. If they don't want to abide by the rules of freestyle wrestling, that might happen. I'm not sure. But it will be tighter than the last time."
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How will Danis behave at RAF 07?
Dillon Danis has been a frequent rule-breaker throughout his career, known for finding himself in trouble both inside and outside the ring.
Conor McGregor's teammate was thrown out of his 2023 boxing match with Logan Paul for trying to submit him, despite the match being governed by boxing rules. More recently, he picked up a lifetime UFC ban after getting into a fight with Islam Makhachev's team at UFC 322.
Ben Askren believes Danis could push the boundaries again when he faces Colby Covington at RAF 07. The match will be officiated more strictly than usual, with referees under clear instruction to enforce the rules closely.
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"I 1,000 percent see Danis doing that," the retired UFC fighter added about submission attempts.
"Again, I will say the referees will be instructed to hold this one a little tighter. Because we know Colby generally wrestles by the rules, and he is the one who is the veteran, he should be the favorite, and he should wrestle by the rules. Can you see Dillon Danis getting out of pocket? A 1,000 percent.
"So here are the rules of the match. If you do things that are illegal, like a guillotine chokehold, there will be a caution of one [point], there will be a penalty. If you get three penalties, you are disqualified.
"So I think we just need a referee who is really going to make them abide by the rules of the thing and we need make extra, extra clear here's the rules, here's how it's going to go down and if you don't want to do a real wrestling match, then this is a real wrestling match and you'll be disqualified."
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