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Gallows Seems To Be A Sure Shot In Second Half Of 2013

Posted: Jul 5th 2013 By: CMBurnham

It is very easy for wrestlers to stay within their comfort zone. Find a company. Work there and only there. Become a big fish in a small pond.

An arguement could be made that Drake Gallows has done that. After all, he calls himself The Underground Icon, a reference to the Underground Arena where SWCW runs their shows. And a quick look at his Oklafan bio reveals that his greatest success came in SWCW. He is a 5-time former SWCW All-American Champion and a 2-time former SWCW Hardcore Champion. He was also voted SWCW Rookie of the year in 2011 and his Clockwork Orange House of Fun Match against current ComPro Showtime Champion Bobby Starr was voted Match of the Year for Oklafan in 2011.

Obviously, Gallows has competed in many organisations in and around Oklahoma, but he always called SWCW home and did not seem to be serious about branching out to other federations on a regular basis until now. But that does not mean that he seems intent on leaving SWCW any time soon.

Perhaps one of the reasons why Gallows chooses to remain at SWCW is because of the loyalty they showed to his brother, Crisstopher Crow. Each year since his untimely death, SWCW has held a show in honour of Crow. This year, that show featured the return of the Sure-Shot Contract. The contract guarantees the holder a shot at any SWCW Title. Obviously, this contract was not going to be put up for grabs in just any match. Instead, it would be a match only seen once before in SWCW...

Three Stages of Hell.

The concept was relatively simple. The match would have three aspects to it. The first part would be a Gauntlet Battle Royal. Every 40 seconds, a new competitor would enter the ring and the only way to be eliminated would be over the top rope. All totaled, there were 17 entrants in the Battle Royal and Gallows was fortunate to be number 15. He also had not competed earlier on the card. Bodies were all over the ring, but the field began to be reduced as time went on and competitors were thrown out. Ultimately, it came down to Gallows, Maniac Mike, Havoc and Crossfire Morrison.

Thus began stage 2: The 4-Way Elimination Match.

At this point, the idea was to eliminate two of the competitors and, being the smallest man in the match, it was easy to pick on Morrison and take him out first. Havoc did just that. But the three men who remained each possessed a unique strength they brought to the match. Gallows had the heart, Havoc had the power and Mike had the deviousness. In this contest, power lost to deviousness as Mike was able to pin Havoc. But that just meant that it was time for the third and final stage.

The Ladder Match.

By this point, both men were beaten and bloody, but both saw the prize they wanted hanging high above the ring. All they had to do was climb up and grab it. Surely memories of a previous Ladder Match ran through the minds of both men; a match that saw Mike win his first SWCW Title and Gallows was forced to share possession of the SWCW All-American Title with Bobby Starr. But that was 2011. This was two years later and both men were once again hungry to taste gold. As should be expected, this stage of the match was brutal. Both men did incredible damage to their bodies in the effort to ascend to the top and grab the briefcase. At one point, Gallows appeared to have the briefcase in his grasp, but could not resist the urge to once more inflict punishment on Mike by diving onto his body from almost the top of the cage. Gallows also obliterated a ladder (and almost obliterated his opponent ) after laying Mike across a ladder which bridged a gap from the upright ladder to the ring rope, then connecting with a diving leg drop off onto this construction. In the end, Mike's body was too battered and broken to continue and Gallows pulled himself achingly up the ladder and unhooked the briefcase, winning the match. The toll it took on both men may not be known for weeks, but Gallows had enough strength left to pick his opponent up and show respect for the effort put forward.

Gallows now has a guaranteed title shot at an SWCW Title in the future. It was also announced this past Saturday that Gallows would be one of three men in a Ladder Match for the vacant IZW Impact Division Title (the others being Copycat and Phoenix) at Evolution on July 20th. In only one month, Gallows has made quite an impression in the Lawton-based federation. Additionally, Gallows is undefeated in MSWA since making his return there at the beginning of June. This past Sunday saw him pick up a huge win over Kevin Morgan, which must certainly put him as a top contender to either the MSWA Mid-South Heavyweight or Oklahoma titles.

Sometimes, it is worth the risk to put comfort behind you, because the rewards are greater than you may realise.