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Unlucky Blow Places Groom In #1 Contendership Position

Posted: Jun 8th 2018 By: Michael Hunt

Revenge is a dish best served cold, or so the old saying goes. But with it being summer, the heat from revenge only ignites so many other things. And personal issues can turn feuds into worse cases than anyone ever imagined.

Just ask Graham Bell and Brandon Groom. One of them is going to receive an NWA World Title opportunity next month.

This entire situation began in September of 2017 when Bell and Groom faced off against each other in a Hair-vs-Hair match. Both men were known for their long Samon-esque locks and, as with most Hair-vs-Hair matches, this was more about pride than anything else. Bell eventually won the match and while Groom was not shaved completely bald as expected, he was considerably shortened to the pleasure of the crowd.

Groom seemed to find the new look appealing and continued on his venture to become BPW Oklahoma Champion. Bell, meanwhile, continued to travel around the country, not setting any particular roots anywhere. But he always seemed to end up back in BPW.

Last month, Bell and Groom, along with Ray Martinez and Spike, were put into an impromptu Fatal 4-Way Match to determine the #1 contender to the BPW Oklahoma Title. Spike ended up victorious, but the old heat between Groom and Bell resurfaced. And when the NWA announced their rankings, both Groom and Bell were surprisingly high considering neither compete full-time for an NWA affiliate. So the BPW Board of Directors put together a match to determine the #1 contender for NWA World Champion Nick Aldis on July 7th.

When the June 2nd show began, Groom made it clear that he intended to win this match and challenge for the NWA World Title. He even showed that he had kept some of the tufts of shaven hair from almost half a year before, which provoked some nauseous reactions from the crowd as well as Graham Bell. While Groom was polite in the way he addressed Bell, Bell rather blatantly made it clear that he did not respect Groom because he felt Groom was a narcissist, a liar and a cheat. The back and forth verbal exchange between the two of them eventually became a physical issue BPW Commissioner C. M. Burnham having to intercede and remind them to keep the action for the main event.

And even though quite a bit of time had passed between the opening of the show and the main event, things had not calmed down any as Bell attacked Groom before the official introductions for the match could be made. Very quickly, the match spilled outside the confines of the ring and carried on around the gym. Gym equipment was utilized in creative manners by both sides and the violence kept going as referee Ben Kelly tried desperately to get the combatants back in the ring. After probably a good 5-7 minutes of outside action on the gam equpiment as well as the rampway, they re-entered the ring and the match continued. Bell and Groom understood exactly what was on the line here and threw everything they had at each other. High-risk moves. High-Impact finishers. Personal insults. Everything was deployed in the hopes of getting that all-important 3-count.

But as luck would have it, it was an accidental collision that proved the turning point. As Bell hoisted Groom up for an aeroplane spin, Groom’s feet collided with Kelly, knocking him briefly senseles. Bell completed the aeroplane spin and drop, along with a cover, but there was no one present to count to 3. Bell even attempted to revive the referee, but with no success. Groom, who had gotten back to his feet by this point, took advantage of the situation and kicked Bell in the groin, putting him down, then drew the slowly reviving referee’s attention. Three seconds later, Aldis’ opponent for July 7th was determined.

It’s been some time since Brandon Groom was a serious challenger for the NWA World Title, perhaps dating back to his time as NWA Oklahoma Champion. But if Groom was willing to sink to the depths he did here, who knows what he will do with Ten Pounds of Championship Gold on the line. Whatever the end result, Groom has found that he doesn’t need long hair to muster up the power to succeed. He just needs luck.