Welcome to another interview on the Scottish Wrestling Network. Today, I am delighted to bring you an interview with one of Scotland’s fastest rising stars and winner of the 2018 Drew Galloway Invitational Tournament, “The Bone Collector” Irving Garrett!
Hi Irving, thank you for letting us interview you ahead of your WrestleZone return on Saturday evening. We’ll kick things off with the most basic of questions – what initially brought you into professional wrestling?
Of all things video games. I never had Sky growing up so the first things I got to watch as they were happening were WCW Worldwide (A heavily censored 1 hour recap of Monday Nitro and Thunder that was actually 6 weeks old) on Channel 5 and Sunday Night Heat on Channel 4, along with the 4 PPV’s that Channel 4 got as part of that deal. Royal Rumble 2000 was a phenomenon on the playground. Without a good way to watch regularly, I really loved playing the games to find out more information about the wrestlers. That has stuck to this day and I have a huge love for all wrestling games. I have even helped work on a couple.
Who were your favourites to watch growing up, and who are your favourites to watch nowadays?
In that 1999/2000 era where I first started watching regularly, The Rock, Chris Jericho, and Scotty 2 Hotty were my WWF favourites. On the WCW side I loved Sting, Goldberg and, of all people, Lash LeRoux. I cheered my heroes. Over the years my tastes changed and I started my love of technical wrestling and submissions. Nowadays, I love watching Minoru Suzuki, Jonathan Gresham, Zack Sabre Jr., and Matt Riddle. All people with a mastery of the art of a submission.
You began your training at the Glasgow Pro Wrestling Asylum, and I believe you were also part of one of the first classes. What made you choose the GPWA over any other school?
It was timing. Very good timing. I had been hearing about how much fun actually learning to wrestle was from my best friend (PBW’s Tam The Ram, currently on sabbatical) and so I thought I should at least try it. I then saw the adverts on Facebook and Twitter for a new school in Glasgow and the incredible 5 man coaching team (Red Lightning, Jack Jester, Lionheart, BT Gunn, and Wolfgang) and knew it would have to be the one for me. It also helped that it was in the centre of Glasgow as I travel down from Dundee and it made it easy to get to!
Your wrestling style is more technical than anything else, with a number of submission holds to your name and the moniker of The Bone Collector. Was there anyone who specifically influenced you to use this style?
I love technical wrestling and in particular loved submission holds since I was young. I knew I was probably going to go down that path when training. But for a long time I didn’t really embrace it, preferring to focus on all areas. It’s only when the coaches told me that I was ready to be on shows that I started to think about how I wanted to present myself.
In May 2018, you were victorious in the Drew Galloway Invitational Tournament, where you defeated Craig Anthony, Grant McIvor, Prince Asad, and Damien over two days. How did you prepare, both mentally and physically, for the tournament?
I trained harder on the lead up, working on my cardio most of all. Multiple matches in one night was not to be sniffed at. I researched as much about as many other wrestlers as I could. In Craig Anthony’s case, I unfortunately had little to work from. He is a special talent though and it will be interesting to see his career path this year. I had a feeling that Damien may end up in the finals from the other bracket. Luckily as someone with more experience, I could scout a couple of his techniques and find counters.
The third of these tournaments is coming up in May, where you’ll be entering as the 2018 winner. Is there anyone specifically you’d like to face over the two nights?
Hmm. I’m not sure who will be appearing. From the GPWA side of things, I could see a couple of new faces. Charlie Vyce in particular is one to watch. I plan on retaining that title. it will take a lot to knock me out of the tournament.
Speaking of tournaments, you also competed in Discovery Wrestling’s Hotter Than Hell Edinburgh Invitational Tournament, where you sadly went out in the first round at the hands of Liam Thomson. What was your strategy for this tournament, given that it wasn’t just over one weekend?
Unlike many tournaments, the Hotter Than Hell takes place over the course of the year, so for me it would be like preparing for any announced match. It’s interesting to have a situation where you absolutely can prepare for different opponents in different rounds. Liam Thomson had my number last year. He put me out of the tournament and defeated me in Maryhill on a Wrestling Experience Scotland show. He certainly used the momentum from his return to the ring to gain many victories. I shall have to rectify that in the future.
Apart from these tournaments, what have been some of your personal favourites matches and highlights from your career thus far?
I love being in the ring against any opponent, but there is a special pleasure in facing someone with more experience than me. I tend to learn more and pick up more skills. I do want to be the first Asylum student to have defeated every coach. My singles debut was against BT Gunn and I have been itching to face him now with 2 more years of experience. Wolfgang I faced while he was the ICW World Heavyweight Champion. That was a real test but I did get him in a few powerful holds before he powerbombed and pinned me. I have been in tag team matches with Jack Jester and Lionheart. I do want to face them, Lionheart in particular is having the run of his life. Red Lightning is someone I have never been in the ring with and with his return, that can now be a possibility. I also cannot wait for Stevie Boy to be cleared. I think I would be able to have a very good match with him. This past year I will say that I was able to claim a victory over Andy Wild after losing the year previously. In my career, I take my losses personally and want to avenge each and every one of them.
You’re making your return to WrestleZone on Saturday night against Alan Sterling, with your previous appearance coming in October against Damien. How much did you enjoy your first venture up to the north-east?
I really enjoyed my last trip to the north-east. Damien is a hell of an opponent and I bet that we have not seen the last of each other. WrestleZone is a company I have been following for many years from afar, so to debut in a match against their heavyweight champion was a huge privilege for me. I can’t wait to go back.
We’re in a new year now – what are your goals for 2019?
More victories. I had a good record last year, winning the majority of the time. I want to keep that going. I want to retain that Drew Galloway title. I also want some gold for the collection. Maybe I will make some strides towards that. My main goal is to work in the places that have invited me. I wrestled for ICW, Discovery and WrestleZone over the course of last year. I would love to be back at each of them.
Who would be your all-time dream opponent, past or present?
This is a very tough question for me, I always end up with a different answer. Hiroshi Tanahashi has been an all-time great wrestler for the last 12 or so years, turning around the fortunes of NJPW before Kazuchika Okada, Tetsuya Naito, and Kenny Omega were on the main event platform. He also just main evented his 10th Tokyo Dome show and is the IWGP Heavyweight Champion again. Right now, I would want to face him.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?
A champion, a mainstay, and a name in the UK scene.
Where can fans find you on social media?
@IrvGarrett on Twitter, @irvinggarrett on Instagram, and Irving Garrett on Facebook.
And lastly, how big is your collection of bones right now? You must have a fair few in there at this point!
Well, I had 10 victories last year. 3 were by the Octopus Bind which is an arm submission and the other 7 were from my inverted figure four heel hook. There are 64 bones in the arm and 62 in the leg so last year’s collection stands at 626. Plenty of room for more…
Our thanks to Irving Garrett for answering our questions.
You can catch The Bone Collector in action tomorrow night as he faces Alan Sterling at WrestleZone’s Summerhill Showdown from Aberdeen’s Summerhill Hotel. Tickets, priced between £10-15, are available from http://www.ringsideworld.co.uk.
🆂🆆🅽 | Scottish Wrestling Network 