Gran Markus Jr.

NOTE: Gran Markus Jr. is last known to have wrestled in 2003. The Gran Markus Jr. who appeared in Perros del Mal (2008), IWRG (2010) is a different person.

Profile

Gran Markus Jr.

Name Gran Markus Jr. Real name Cándido Robles Cruz Nicknames El Trailer Asesino (The Killer Truck) Name history Tony Benetto (debut - 09/87), Gran Markus Jr. (09/87 - ) Family Junior (Guadalajara) (son); not related to Gran Markus Maestro(s) Pedro Anguiano, Félix Mosqueda, Diablo Velasco (polishing) Birth date, location August 14, 1953 - Guadalajara, Jalisco Obituary date April 24, 2026 (aged 72) Debut, location 1977 - Guadalajara, Jalisco Lost mask to Mil Máscaras - July 17, 1997 - El Toreo Height 6'0"/183 cms Weight 286 lbs/130 kg Signature moves Big Splash, Avalanche Splash in the corner, Sitdown splash Titles: National Heavyweight Title (3, once as Benetto and twice as Markus), National Tag Team Titles (w/ Rayo de Jalisco Jr.), CMLL World Trios Titles (w/ El Hijo del Gladiador & Dr. Wagner Jr.), Distrito Federal Heavyweight Title, CMLL World Tag Team Titles (w/ El Hijo del Gladiador)

LuchaBlog Obituary:

Gran Markus Jr. (Candido Robles Cruz, 72) passed away on Friday. Televisa boxing announcer Edgar Alejandre announced the news. No cause of death was mentioned, but he’d been battling diabetes for many years. Markus, under his original unmasked Tony Benetto character, came out of the Guadalajara school in the late 70s and was pushed as the national heavyweight champion by 1979. He was wider than tall and believable as a heavyweight. Benetto was a reliable upper-level rudo through the eighties. He joined the tecnico side in 1985, following feuds with Sangre Chicana and Los Infernales, then turned back rudo by the end of 1986. Benetto seems to have left the Mexico City area at the end of March 1987 and re-emerged three months later as Gran Markus Jr. I wonder what the fans thought at the time, because it would be hard not to figure out the identity of the newly masked man. He stuck as that heel heavyweight through the 90s, eventually forming a new “La Ola Blanca” with Dr. Wagner Jr. & Hijo del Gladiador. He seems to leave CMLL in June 1997, pops up for one AAA match (where he’s clearly unmasked in a vignette), loses his mask to Mil Mascaras on a UWA revival show, and then is allowed back in to CMLL a few weeks later. It’s strange. Maybe CMLL knew they weren’t going to pay for a Markus mask removal, but liked the guy enough to let him go do it elsewhere. Maybe he just asked very nicely.

Markus last big run was in the early 2000s, when he was part of Pierroth’s Puerto Rican army (mostly Mexicans, of course). Markus was picked to turn against his group and re-join the Mexicans. He won Veneno’s mask before losing his hair to Pierroth. That was happening in the first few years of me watching lucha libre. The matches were heated, though they didn’t seem good. What sticks out to me now is that they did this big feud with a guy who was just about retired. Pierroth defeats Markus in March, and then Markus is out of CMLL three months later. That seems like a spot they could’ve gotten more mileage out of with a young guy, but it is a decent summation of his career. Not the greatest worker, but a wrestler who looked the part and was convincing enough to use him in the top spots. Gran Markus doesn’t come up much nowadays, though he did get mentioned by the CMLL commentators a week ago; Estudiante Jr. has a similar body type. (They didn’t seem to acknowledge Markus’ passing.)

Luchas de apuestas record

Date	Apuesta	Winner(s)	Loser(s)	Arena and/or Place
??/??/??	hair	Cuauhtémoc Torres	Tony Benetto	Arena Coliseo - Monterrey, Nuevo León
??/??/??	hair	Satánico	Tony Benetto	unknown
80/06/27	hair	El Faraón & Ringo Mendoza	Tony Benetto & Herodes	Arena México - Mexico City
81/05/29	hair	Adorable Rubí	Tony Benetto	Arena México - Mexico City
82/04/30	hair	Halcón Ortiz	Tony Benetto	Arena México - Mexico City
82/12/10	hair	Ringo Mendoza, Cesar Curiel & Rey Salomón	Tony Benetto, Herodes & Adorable Rubí	Arena México - Mexico City
83/11/18	hair	Halcón Ortiz	Tony Benetto	Arena México - Mexico City
84/09/??	hair	Ringo Mendoza	Tony Benetto	Arena México - Mexico City
85/03/31	hair	Sangre Chicana	Tony Benetto	Arena México - Mexico City
85/11/16	hair	Tony Benetto	Popitekus	Arena Coliseo
86/10/17	hair	Satánico	Tony Benetto	Arena México
89/??/??	hair	Gran Markus Jr.	Gran Markus	Arena Coliseo - Monterrey, Nuevo León
97/06/29	mask (1)	Mil Máscaras	Gran Markus Jr.	El Toreo - Naucalpan, Mexico State
98/04/24	hair	Gran Markus Jr.	Brazo de Oro	Arena México - Mexico City
98/05/29	hair	Brazo de Plata	Gran Markus Jr.	Arena México - Mexico City
99/07/19	hair	Atlantis	Gran Markus Jr.	Arena Coliseo - Guadalajara, Jalisco
00/01/30	hair	Rayo de Jalisco Jr.	Gran Markus Jr.	Arena Coliseo - Guadalajara, Jalisco
00/07/17	hair	La Parka	Gran Markus Jr.	Plaza de Toros Lauro Luis Longoria - Nuevo Laredo, Tamps.
01/07/16	hair (2)	?	Gran Markus Jr.	Plaza de Toros Lauro Luis Longoria - Nuevo Laredo, Tamps.
02/03/17	mask	Gran Markus Jr.	Veneno	Arena México - Mexico City
02/11/20	hair	Gran Markus Jr.	Veneno	Arena México - Mexico City
03/03/21	hair	Pierroth Jr.	Gran Markus Jr.	Arena México - Mexico City
(1) Triangle match with Tinieblas; (2) Jaula de la Muerte

Gallery

as Mexican National Heavyweight Champion

with Cesar Valentino

Mask to Veneno

Lucha Libre #1220