Cándido Robles Cruz (August 14, 1953) is a retired Mexican Luchador, or professional wrestler . Cruz is best known under the ring name Gran Markus, Jr. and for his work in the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL). Cruz originally worked under the name "Tony Benetto" but in the late 1980s he changed to being an enmascarado, or masked wrestler, taking the name Gran Markus, Jr. Cruz is not related to wrestler Gran Markus, it is a storyline relationship. Cruz has both teamed with and fought against the original Gran Markus. Cruz lost the "Gran Markus, Jr." mask on June 29, 1997 when he lost a Luchas de Apuesta match, or "bet match" to Mil Máscaras.
Professional wrestling career[]
Cándido Robles made his professional wrestling debut in 1977, adopting the ring name Tony Benetto upon his debut. As Benetto he initially wrestled on the independent circuit before signing with Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (EMLL), Mexico's largest and the world's oldest wrestling promotion. On January 16, 1980 Benetto won his first championship when he defeated El Halcón to win the Mexican National Heavyweight Championship. His first reign with the title lasted until July 26, 1980 when he lost to rising newcomer Cien Caras. Over the next couple of years Benetto would team with Rayo de Jalisco, Sr., defeating Sangre Chicana and Cien Caras to win the Mexican National Tag Team Championship on October 28, 1985. The duo held on to the championship until April 16, 1986 where they lost to Los Hermanos Dinamita (Cien Caras and his brother Máscara Año 2000).
In 1987 Robles abandoned the "Tony Benetto" character in favor of an enmascarado, or masked character, called "Gran Markus, Jr.". A character that, in storyline terms, was being presented as the son of Gran Markus, even if they were not actually related. Robles began wrestling under the white mask that had been Gran Markus' trademark for years, reinvigorating his professional wrestling career. On December 17, 1987 he became a two time Mexican National Heavyweight Champion, although it was not officially recognized as such at the time since there was no connection between the "Tony Benetto" character and Gran Markus, Jr. The second reign ended on August 7, 1988 when he was defeated for the title by Alfonso Dantés. In 1989 Gran Markus, Jr. began a storyline with the original Gran Markus, through which it was revealed that he was not actually the son of Gran Markus. During the storyline Gran Markus, Jr. defeated Gran Markus in a Luchas de Apuesta, or bet match, where Gran Markus ended up shaved bald after the match. n July 9, 1990 Gran Markus, Jr. won his third Mexican National Heavyweight Championship, defeating Popitekus for the belt. This third and final reign lasted three months before he lost the belt to Rayo de Jalisco, Jr., son of his former tag team partner. In the early-1990s Gran Markus, Jr. El Hijo del Gladiador and Dr. Wagner, Jr. formed a team called La Ola Blanca ("the White Wave"), named after the original La Ola Blanca that consisted of Dr. Wagner, Jr.'s father Dr. Wagner and Ángel Blanco. The trio defeated Los Brazos ("The Arms"; El Brazo, Brazo de Oro and Brazo de Plata) on April 22, 1994 to win the CMLL World Trios Championship. La Ola Blanca held the titles for almost a year, until March 31, 1995 when they were defeated by Los Cachales ("The Jackals"; Bestia Salvaje, Emilio Charles, Jr. and Sangre Chicana). The following year Gran Markus, Jr. and Hijo del Gladiador defeated Atlantis and Rayo de Jalisco, Jr. to win the CMLL World Tag Team Championship on behalf of La Ola Blanca. Their reign with the tag team belts only lasted for a month as Atlantis and Lizmark won the belts on October 18, 1996. In the late 1990s La Ola Blanca disintegrated, helped along by Gran Markus, Jr. losing his white mask in a Lucha de Apuesta match against Mil Máscaras on June 29, 1997. Following the mask loss Gran Markus, Jr. worked a feud against Los Brazos, defeating Brazo de Oro in a Lucha de Apuesta, hair vs. hair match, but ended up losing his own hair to Brazo de Plata on May 29, 1998. In the years that followed Gran Markus, Jr.'s career slowed down, working less dates and usually in smaller venues. During the early part of the 2000s Gran Markus, Jr. lost Luchas de Apuesta matches against Atlantis, Rayo de Jalisco, Jr., La Parka and Pierroth, Jr., having his hair shaved off each time.
In wrestling[]
- Finishing moves
- Signature moves
Championships and accomplishments[]
- CMLL World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with El Hijo del Gladiador
- CMLL World Trios Championship (1 time) – with El Hijo del Gladiador and Dr. Wagner Jr.
- Mexican National Heavyweight Championship (3 times)
- Mexican National Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Rayo de Jalisco, Jr.
- Distrito Federal Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
Lucha de Apuesta record[]
| Wager | Winner | Loser | Location | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hair | José Torres | Tony Benetto | Monterrey, Nuevo León | Unknown | |
| Hair | Satánico | Tony Benetto | Unknown | Unknown | |
| Hair | El Faraón and Ringo Mendoza | Tony Benetto and Herodes | Mexico City, Mexico | June 27, 1980 | |
| Hair | Halcón Ortiz | Tony Benetto | Mexico City, Mexico | April 30, 1982 | |
| Hair | Ringo Mendoza, César Curiel and Rey Salomón | Tony Benetto, Herodes and Adorable Rubi | Mexico City, Mexico | December 10, 1982 | |
| Hair | Halcón Ortiz | Tony Benetto | Mexico City, Mexico | November 28, 1983 | |
| Hair | Ringo Mendoza | Tony Benetto | Mexico City, Mexico | September 1984 | |
| Hair | Gran Markus, Jr. | Gran Markus | Monterrey, Nuevo León | 1989 | |
| Mask | Mil Máscaras | Gran Markus, Jr. | Naucalpan, Mexico State | June 29, 1997 | Match also included Tinieblas |
| Hair | Gran Markus, Jr. | Brazo de Oro | Mexico City, Mexico | April 24, 1998 | |
| Hair | Brazo de Plata | Gran Markus, Jr. | Mexico City, Mexico | May 29, 1998 | |
| Hair | Atlantis | Gran Markus, Jr. | Guadalajara, Jalisco | July 19, 1999 | |
| Hair | Rayo de Jalisco Jr. | Gran Markus, Jr. | Guadalajara, Jalisco | January 30, 2000 | |
| Hair | La Parka | Gran Markus, Jr. | Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas | July 17, 2000 | |
| Mask | Gran Markus, Jr. | Veneno | Mexico City, Mexico | March 17, 2002 | |
| Hair | Gran Markus, Jr. | Veneno | Mexico City, Mexico | November 20, 2002 | |
| Hair | Pierroth, Jr. | Gran Markus, Jr. | Mexico City, Mexico | March 21, 2003 | |
| Hair | Loco Zandokan II | Gran Markus, Jr. | Guadalajara, Jalisco | June 10, 2007 |
