Indie Watch: Who the F*** is Griff Garrison?

Indie Watch is our regular series that looks at all of the amazing talents working the independent circuits around the world. Some are veterans revitalizing their careers, some are indie prospects hitting their peaks, while others are names to be on the watch for! This edition looks at a rising star in the Georgia indie scene who has begun appearing for AEW and become a running gag on “Being The Elite”, in Griff Garrison.

For months now during the pandemic, amidst travel restrictions and other scenarios, All Elite Wrestling has been employing many young indie wrestlers on their roster, mostly on AEW DARK. This past June, a long-haired wrestler known as Griff Garrison made his debut in a loss to Jimmy Havoc, and since then has appeared in matches against the likes of Lance Archer, Ricky Starks, and this past Wednesday against MJF. He’s even become a recurring character on The Young Bucks‘ YouTube series, Being The Elite, where he’s frequently mistaken as Jungle Boy (due to his long hair), resulting in multiple AEW stars wondering out loud “Who the f*** is Griff Garrison?”

Originally hailing from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Griff Garrison was trained by LaBron Kozone, a Mid-Atlantic indie star who has performed with Carolina Wrestling Federation (CWF) Mid-Atlantic and Fire Star Pro Wrestling (FSPW). Garrison began training in 2016, and made his debut in Fire Star Pro in December of 2016. He soon began to work into the Southern indie scene, with Georgia’s Anarchy Wrestling, Peachstate Wrestling Alliance, and Southern Fried Championship Wrestling (SFCW), as well as Alabama’s Pro South Wrestling.

It was in the Georgia scene that he found his ticket to success, becoming a regular with Anarchy and SFCW, winning the Anarchy Triple Crown on two occasions, as well as winning the Anarchy Tag Team Championships alongside Marcus Kross in Master And The Machine. He’s also the current reigning tag team champion in Anarchy, this time alongside Ben Buchanan. He continued to compete for FSPW, where he became a 2x FSPW Heavyweight Champion.

In March of 2018, he debuted in Maryland with MCW Pro (formerly Maryland Championship Wrestling) at their Proving Grounds event, and in early 2019, he and Marcus Kross made their debut with Ring of Honor, as Master And The Machine became a frequent tag team on ROH TV, facing teams like The Bouncers, Coast 2 Coast, and even facing The Briscoes for the ROH World Tag Team titles at ROH The Experience this past November. Their last appearance on ROH TV was this past January, where they faced the team of Dalton Castle & Joe Hendry. Garrison has also been apart of several ROH Future of Honor events.

Now finding himself on a national platform (for however long his stint lasts), Griff Garrison will find his stock higher than ever, and becoming a recurring character on the Bucks’ popular BTE show isn’t going to hurt either. And now next time you hear someone ask “Who the f*** is Griff Garrison?”, this time you’ll have a bit more info.

Check out our full list of previous Indie Watches, showcasing emerging talent from around the world!