Martin Casaus
Born (1985-03-05) March 5, 1985
West Jordan, Utah
Spouse(s)
Leslie Dean Casaus
​
(m. 2021)​
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Magnificent Martin[1]
Martin Casaus
Marty Casaus
Marty Martinez
Tristan Gallo
Billed height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Billed weight245 lb (111 kg; 17.5 st)
Billed fromLa Jolla, California
Salt Lake City, Utah
Trained byDerrick Hubbard
Steve Nielsen
Tom Howard
Debut2003

Martin Casaus (born March 5, 1985) is an American professional wrestler. Casaus is known for his work in El Rey Network series Lucha Underground under the ring name of Marty "The Moth" Martinez, where he is a former Lucha Underground Champion.

Personal life

Martin was born March 5, 1985, to Francis and Cheryl Casaus in West Jordan, Utah. Casaus was a four sport student athlete in high school and turned down college scholarships in lacrosse and football to pursue his academic studies. His parents put in overtime at their jobs so they could enroll Casaus in private schools until college. Casaus was the first in his family to graduate college. He received a bachelor's degree in Business Administration with a 3.98 GPA. Casaus has one brother who is currently in the United States Navy. Casaus holds a series 7 and 63 financial professional licenses.[2] Martin married Leslie Dean on June 9, 2021.

Martin credits his success in life to his mentors, Pete Gallegos and Andrew Lucero. Without their continued guidance and direction, Martin admits his successes would not be so measurable.

Career

Early career

Casaus first started training to become a wrestler in 2003 at the Utah-based Ultra Championship Wrestling-Zero (UCW). He was primarily trained by Derrick Jannetty. Adopting the ring name "Tristan Gallo", he was placed in Stevie Slick's faction, "The Dynasty", as an arrogant heel and crony to Slick. During his time in the promotion, he won the UCW-Zero Heavyweight Championship 6 times, the UCW-Zero Tag Team Championship 5 times and the UCW-Zero Ultra-X Championship 1 time.

In the early 2000s Casaus began working in the independent wrestling scene. He wrestled as Tristan Gallo in many promotions across the country, especially in the mid west. He later changed his name to reflect his real name after WWE Tough Enough used it during the show

World Wrestling Entertainment/WWE (2007, 2011)

Casaus had his first WWE tryout at the FCW training center in 2007. Casaus was announced as a competitor on the revival of WWE Tough Enough season five which began airing on April 4, 2011. The competition consisted of in and out of ring training, along with challenges in and out of the ring.

On the seventh episode ("Running With Wolves"), Casaus had a freak accident that sent him to the emergency room. He later returned to the training center on crutches with his title belt around his waist, revealing to Tough Enough host Stone Cold Steve Austin that he was forced to leave the competition after doctors would not allow him to continue. Casaus was the only contestant that got to hang his belt up, as well as the only competitor to never be in the "Bottom Three".[3]

Lucha Underground (2014–2018)

In September 2014, Casaus confirmed he signed with El Rey Network's new show Lucha Underground, that began airing on October 29.[4] He worked the tapings under the ring name "Magnificent Martin".[1] He also worked as Marty the Magician, with Beautiful Brenda as his assistant. However, both suffered an injury and their characters were dropped.[5] Casaus debuted on (aired April 29, 2015) as Marty "The Moth" Martinez, a fan who interfered in the match between Cage, King Cuerno and Hernandez. On February 22, 2015, Martinez had his first aired match, where he was defeated by Prince Puma.[6] July 15, Marty demanded and lost a match against Sexy Star for one of the seven ancient Aztec medallions which she had won only moments before, due to the fact the insignia on the medallion was of a moth; confirming his claims of having "Aztec blood". His character then was tweaked to be mentally unhinged after he kidnapped Sexy Star and likely tortured her along with his storyline sister Mariposa for the duration of Lucha Underground’s hiatus in the summer. In Season 3, his character developed an obsession with ring announcer Melissa Santos, which led to a rivalry with Fénix, who was having a storyline relationship with Melissa. The rivalry culminated in a Luchas de Apuestas match at Ultima Lucha Tres with Fénix putting up his mask against Marty's hair. During the match, Marty used Mariposa (who had accompanied him) as a human shield and deliberately pulled her into the path of a dive by Fénix, causing her to turn on him and be instrumental in his losing the match, after which his head was shaved by Fénix and Melissa. In season 4 he was the last man eliminated in Aztec Warfare 4, losing to Pentagón Dark. During season 4, Martinez defeated Dragon Azteca Jr. to win the Gift of the Gods Championship. That same night, he cashed the title for an opportunity for Pentagón Dark's Lucha Underground Championship, which he won. During his reign, he defeated Mariposa and aligned with Reklusa, but lost the title against Pentagón Dark at Ultima Lucha Cuatro in a Cero Miedo match.

All Elite Wrestling (2021)

Casaus made his debut for All Elite Wrestling on the April 28th edition of Dark, facing Brian Cage in a losing effort. Casaus would then appear once more on the May 11th edition of Dark, losing to Jungle Boy.

Acting career

In 2004 Casaus had his first taste of the entertainment business when he appeared on the TV show Everwood to play an uncredited featured folk style wrestler. He immediately began acting training.

Filmography

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2004 Everwood "Evil Wrestler" Uncredited
Season 2 Episode 12
2007–2011 NWA Showcase Tristan Gallo
2011 WWE Tough Enough Himself
2013 Barter Kings Trader
2014–2018 Lucha Underground Marty "the Moth" Martinez

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2012 Vampired Bully
2017 Sandy Wexler Night Night wrestler

Championships and accomplishments

Luchas de Apuestas record

Winner (wager) Loser (wager) Location Event Date Notes
Fénix (mask)Marty Martinez (hair)Boyle Heights, CaliforniaUltima Lucha TresJune 25, 2016[16]

References

  1. 1 2 Johnson, Mike (2014-09-06). "Early spoiler notes from first Lucha Underground TV taping". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved 2014-09-07.
  2. ↑ "film television and wwe tough enough wrestler martin casaus signs with shielia Erickson management". www.abnewswire.com. Retrieved 2015-09-20.
  3. ↑ "WWE Tough Enough". USA Network. 2012-03-30. Retrieved 2013-09-15.
  4. ↑ Johnson, Mike (2014-09-06). "First Lucha Underground taping for the El Rey network tonight, updates on all we know". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved 2014-09-06.
  5. ↑ "Holly Meowy (Beautiful Brenda), en exclusiva". www.solowrestling.com. 20 October 2018.
  6. ↑ Boutwell, Josh (2015-02-28). "Viva la Raza! Lucha Weekly for 2/28/15". Wrestleview. Retrieved 2015-02-28.
  7. ↑ "The Oklahoma Wrestling Fan's Resource Center". oklafan.com. Archived from the original on 2013-12-24. Retrieved 2013-09-15.
  8. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip (July 7, 2009). "FPW Nexus 09 – 5th Anniversary Show". CAGEMATCH – The Internet Wrestling Database. Archived from the original on March 9, 2023. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
  9. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "FSW Tag Team Championship". CAGEMATCH – The Internet Wrestling Database. Archived from the original on January 23, 2023. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
  10. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip (August 12, 2016). "LLL Event 12.08.2016". CAGEMATCH – The Internet Wrestling Database. Archived from the original on March 9, 2023. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
  11. ↑ Kreikenbohm, Philip (August 12, 2018). "PWB Wrestlefest 8". CAGEMATCH – The Internet Wrestling Database. Archived from the original on June 5, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Home". rmpwrestling.com.
  13. ↑ "NWA UCW-Zero Heavyweight Championship « Titles Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". Archived from the original on 2016-08-09.
  14. ↑ "NWA UCW-Zero Tag Team Championship « Titles Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". Archived from the original on 2016-08-08.
  15. ↑ "NWA UCW-Zero Ultra X Championship « Titles Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". Archived from the original on 2014-09-06.
  16. ↑ Meltzer, Dave (July 4, 2016). "July 4, 2016 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: NJPW G1 tournament preview, Ali vs. Inoki anniversary, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Campbell, California. p. 32. ISSN 1083-9593.
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