When Graeme Stevely debuted in ICW as the lovable comedic wrestler Grado few could have imagined that he would become the true cornerstone of British wrestling that he is today. Grooving to Madonna and yelling ‘it’s yersel’ was always going to make him a fan favourite but his capture of the ICW world heavyweight championship is testament to how hard he has worked and improved, whilst still maintaining the endearing characteristics that fans have embraced with open arms.

His in-ring skill level has risen tenfold over the past year and the Road to Fear and Loathing tour painted Grado in a wonderful light coming into the biggest fight of his career. Powered by the support of the rabid ICW faithful, the 27-year-old produced memorable promos and picked up impressive victories along the way. In every location he roused the audience and the gigantic wave of support perfectly poised him to challenge Galloway at the sold out SECC event…

So all roads lead to Sunday 15th November and the man from the top end of Stevenston was ready to show the globe why he was the bollocks, and that he did, in emphatic fashion. Drew and Grado meshed perfectly and put on one of the finest main event matches you will ever see; both competitors kicked out of a heap of punishment with some of the closest 2-and-three-quarter counts going. Eventually, amongst shenanigans from Red Lightning, Jack Jester and Mick Foley, Grado nailed the behemoth Galloway with a wee boot plus chair combo allowing Mark Dallas to slide into the ring and make the 3-count, much like Paul Heyman and RVD at ECW One Night Stand 2006. The crowd went fucking wild, breaking out in song and leaping like children in pure ecstasy, applauding their hero who stood tall after what was certainly the best match of his career to date.

Grado’s victory epitomised everything that was and is so bloody joyous about wrestling. The match was spectacular, the story was compelling and ultimately we witnessed a regular, charismatic, slight chubby guy live his life’s dream; a moment so fantastic that is so rarely seen. Never before have I personally been so invested in a wrestler and who knows when a story will grab me by the balls and take me on an emotional joyride again? This was the year of the Grado and was truly one to cherish forever.

So congrats to Grado, Mark Dallas and Insane Championship Wrestling overall – this championship victory was special for far more reasons than I can possibly list and I must personally thank them all for producing something so fun and immersive. Here’s to the new champ’s title run and hopefully Fear and Loathing IX tops this incredible peak that ICW and Grado have already reached.

Watch his awesome entrance at Fear and Loathing VIII here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Yig8NsBRVA