Josh Hokit fights Ciryl Gane for the UFC heavyweight title on Saturday, and he spent part of media day talking about his next contract. It’s with a wrestling league.
At UFC 334 media day, Hokit said a deal with Real American Freestyle is nearly done and that he expects to compete there in 2027 alongside his UFC career, Bloody Elbow reported. He didn’t dress it up, either. The money was the first thing he mentioned.
“They got a good amount of money over there, and that would help me stay sharp with my wrestling as well,” Hokit said.
Then he put a year on it. “I think we’re close to getting a deal done already. In 2027 I think you guys will see me in RAF,” he added.
That’s a fighter answering the question he was asked. I’ll take it over a vague ‘we’ll see what the future holds’ every time.
RAF has turned into the between-fights gig of choice for UFC talent this year. Arman Tsarukyan, Merab Dvalishvili and Khamzat Chimaev have been among the most active MMA names on the mats there. Hokit came up as a wrestler, so there’s been chatter for a while about him landing in RAF and getting back to where he started. Now he’s the one saying it’s close.
First, Gane
None of that matters until Saturday night at Madison Square Garden. Gane defends the heavyweight belt against Hokit in the main event of UFC 334. Right before that, Amanda Nunes returns to face women’s bantamweight champion Kayla Harrison. That’s a loaded top of the card for a November show in New York.
This is Hokit’s first crack at UFC gold, and he got here fast. The former football player is unbeaten in the Octagon and has needed only four UFC fights to earn the shot. He’s also made plenty of noise with a gimmick that’s split fans down the middle, which is part of why “The Incredible Hok’” gets called polarizing in just about every write-up with his name in it, including this one.
Four fights to a heavyweight title shot is a short road. Plenty of fans will say it’s too short. The matchmakers booked it anyway, and I’m not going to complain about a heavyweight title fight with a guy who brings some chaos to the room.
The take
I like the honesty. Hokit is a heavyweight with a wrestling base, a short UFC résumé and a gold-belt fight against the champ, and he still told a room full of reporters that the RAF money looks good. Fighters get paid in windows, and he’s clearly trying to open a second one. The smart move for his bank account is obvious: beat Gane on Saturday at the Garden, then walk into those RAF talks as the UFC heavyweight champion. If he loses, the 2027 wrestling plan probably still happens. It just gets a lot cheaper.
