Post by Kaylee Cross on Apr 4, 2017 18:27:44 GMT
EXCLUSIVE: Proving Grounds Signee Kaylee Cross Hiding a Dark Past Marred in Controversy and Tragedy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 4, 2017
Sources have confirmed that Proving Grounds recruit Kaylee Cross is a member of the controversial Cross family who’s reign of terror spanned five decades in the southern wrestling territories. The Cross family thrived during a time when the sport was mired by loose regulation and unethical athletic commissions.
Graham Cross, the patriarch of the family, competed in the late 50s and 60s and is believed to be among the originators of the strap match and the Texas death match. His panache for brutality left few willing to face him and in the twilight of his career Graham found himself relegated to, “all comers” matches in local venues.
Terry Cross, son of Graham, took over the mantle in the 70s and helped cement the Cross legacy in the south. The bulk of Terry’s matches ended in referee stoppages as he preferred punishing opponents to pinning their shoulders to the mat. By November of 1975 Terry Cross held titles across multiple territories. July of 1979 would be Terry’s final match. A replacement opponent crumpled under the punishment administered by Cross and by the time the match was stopped it was too late. While Cross escaped criminal charges the in-ring death resulted in promoters distancing themselves from his barbaric ways.
In March of 1980 Terry opened the Cross Ranch Training Center. Cross Ranch churned out a succession of notable wrestlers including Terry’s three boys; Bobby, Kevin and Dean.
Bobby Cross inherited his father’s brutal ways and took it upon himself to capture each title his father held prior to his forced retirement. Shortly after achieving his goal in July of 1993 Bobby Cross died in a single car accident, excessive speed and alcohol were cited in the police report.
Kevin Cross continued his family’s legacy of extreme violence but took a more nuanced approach. Having pushed for the addition of experienced Lucha Libre trainers to the Ranch staff Kevin took to the high-risk aerial style with reckless abandon. He captured multiple titles south of the border but his flair for excessive partying and drug use would be his undoing. In April of 1995 Kevin Cross was stabbed to death outside a cantina in Mexico City, no arrests were made.
Two months later, in June of 1995, Kaylee Cross was born.
In January of 1996 a death occurred at Cross Ranch and rumors began to circulate regarding barbaric training practices. A full-scale investigation was launched and while the family was once again able to dodge criminal charges the training facility was shuttered, it’s license revoked by the Tennessee Athletic Commission.
Throughout the controversy, Terry’s youngest son Dean Cross had made a name for himself by breaking the family mold. Dean forged a respectable career as a ring technician and ambassador for the sport. In December of 1997 Dean captured his first title. Two months later he took his own life, there was no note.
It was thought that this would be the final chapter in the Cross family story but it appears there’s more to be written as Kaylee Cross makes her in-ring debut in Proving Grounds Wrestling out of Las Vegas, Nevada.
There are many questions yet to be answered. Did Kaylee train under her father at their shuttered facility in Tennessee? How much of her past, if any, is current trainer Dirk Bentley aware of? Was Cross trying to avoid the stigma of her family by claiming Bentley and Summer O’Reilly as her connection to the business?
We’ll learn more as Kaylee prepares for her debut against, “The Weapon” Avalon Blake. Their match at Proving Grounds Destiny now becomes a battle of two family legacies rich in controversy and history.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 4, 2017
Sources have confirmed that Proving Grounds recruit Kaylee Cross is a member of the controversial Cross family who’s reign of terror spanned five decades in the southern wrestling territories. The Cross family thrived during a time when the sport was mired by loose regulation and unethical athletic commissions.
Graham Cross, the patriarch of the family, competed in the late 50s and 60s and is believed to be among the originators of the strap match and the Texas death match. His panache for brutality left few willing to face him and in the twilight of his career Graham found himself relegated to, “all comers” matches in local venues.
Terry Cross, son of Graham, took over the mantle in the 70s and helped cement the Cross legacy in the south. The bulk of Terry’s matches ended in referee stoppages as he preferred punishing opponents to pinning their shoulders to the mat. By November of 1975 Terry Cross held titles across multiple territories. July of 1979 would be Terry’s final match. A replacement opponent crumpled under the punishment administered by Cross and by the time the match was stopped it was too late. While Cross escaped criminal charges the in-ring death resulted in promoters distancing themselves from his barbaric ways.
In March of 1980 Terry opened the Cross Ranch Training Center. Cross Ranch churned out a succession of notable wrestlers including Terry’s three boys; Bobby, Kevin and Dean.
Bobby Cross inherited his father’s brutal ways and took it upon himself to capture each title his father held prior to his forced retirement. Shortly after achieving his goal in July of 1993 Bobby Cross died in a single car accident, excessive speed and alcohol were cited in the police report.
Kevin Cross continued his family’s legacy of extreme violence but took a more nuanced approach. Having pushed for the addition of experienced Lucha Libre trainers to the Ranch staff Kevin took to the high-risk aerial style with reckless abandon. He captured multiple titles south of the border but his flair for excessive partying and drug use would be his undoing. In April of 1995 Kevin Cross was stabbed to death outside a cantina in Mexico City, no arrests were made.
Two months later, in June of 1995, Kaylee Cross was born.
In January of 1996 a death occurred at Cross Ranch and rumors began to circulate regarding barbaric training practices. A full-scale investigation was launched and while the family was once again able to dodge criminal charges the training facility was shuttered, it’s license revoked by the Tennessee Athletic Commission.
Throughout the controversy, Terry’s youngest son Dean Cross had made a name for himself by breaking the family mold. Dean forged a respectable career as a ring technician and ambassador for the sport. In December of 1997 Dean captured his first title. Two months later he took his own life, there was no note.
It was thought that this would be the final chapter in the Cross family story but it appears there’s more to be written as Kaylee Cross makes her in-ring debut in Proving Grounds Wrestling out of Las Vegas, Nevada.
There are many questions yet to be answered. Did Kaylee train under her father at their shuttered facility in Tennessee? How much of her past, if any, is current trainer Dirk Bentley aware of? Was Cross trying to avoid the stigma of her family by claiming Bentley and Summer O’Reilly as her connection to the business?
We’ll learn more as Kaylee prepares for her debut against, “The Weapon” Avalon Blake. Their match at Proving Grounds Destiny now becomes a battle of two family legacies rich in controversy and history.