John Kronus

George Caiazzo
Ring name(s)	The Eliminator[1] John Kronus[1]
Billed height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)[2]
Billed weight	300 lb (140 kg)[2]
Born	(1969-01-13)January 13, 1969[2] Everett, Massachusetts[2]
Died	July 18, 2007(2007-07-18) (aged 38)[3] Laconia, New Hampshire[4]
Billed from	Boston, Massachusetts
Trained by	Killer Kowalski[3]
Debut	1989[5]
Retired	2002[3]

George B. Caiazzo (January 13, 1969 – July 18, 2007) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, John Kronus and later "Kronus". Caiazzo worked for Extreme Championship Wrestling, the United States Wrestling Association and Xtreme Pro Wrestling. He was perhaps best known as one-half of the tag team The Eliminators with Perry Saturn.^[2][4][3][6]

Career

Caiazzo's father, George Caiazzo, Sr., played football with the New York Giants before suffering an injury.^[7]

In the late 1980s, Caiazzo met professional wrestler Perry Saturn when he began working as a bouncer in a Boston nightclub managed by Saturn. Caiazzo expressed an interest in becoming a wrestler to Saturn, who responded by directing Caiazzo to a professional wrestling school operated by Killer Kowalski. Caiazzo debuted in 1989, briefly wrestling as "The Eliminator".^[1]

In the early 1990s, Saturn offered to form a tag team with Caiazzo. The Greek equivalent of the Roman deity Saturn was Cronus, so Saturn chose the ring name "John Kronus" for Caiazzo. As Saturn and Kronus were their civilizations' respective harvest deities, Saturn proposed that the tag team be known as "The Harvesters of Sorrow". After promoter Jerry Lawler advised Saturn that the significance of the name would not be evident to many fans, Saturn named the team "The Eliminators".^[1]

The Eliminators wrestled their first match together at a United States Wrestling Association house show in 1993. They were hired at a starting salary of $40 a week (they later negotiated a 100% pay raise), and shared an apartment with four other wrestlers. On May 2, 1994, The Eliminators defeated Brian Christopher and Eddie Gilbert for the USWA Tag Team Championship. They held the USWA World Tag Team Championship until June 13, 1994, when they were defeated by PG-13.^[1][8][9]

In 1994 and 1995, The Eliminators wrestled in Japan for the WAR promotion.^[1]

The Eliminators debuted in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based Extreme Championship Wrestling promotion in 1995, jobbing to the Steiner Brothers. ECW promoter Paul Heyman quickly abandoned plans to give them a sadism and masochism gimmick and instead booked them as an unstoppable force in the ECW tag team division. Managed by Jason, The Eliminators won the ECW Tag Team Championship on three occasions between 1996 and 1997, feuding with teams such as the Dudley Boyz, The Gangstas, The Pitbulls, Sabu and Rob Van Dam and the Steiner Brothers.^[1][8][10]

On May 31, 1997, Saturn tore his anterior cruciate ligament during a match. After intense reconstructive surgery, he was given a recovery time of up to a year. Kronus briefly defended the ECW Tag Team Championship single-handedly before losing to the Dudley Boyz. In late 1997, Saturn left ECW for World Championship Wrestling. Kronus competed in the singles division before forming a new tag team, "The Gangstanators", with New Jack. The Gangstanators won the ECW Tag Team Championship in 1997.^[1][8]

Kronus left ECW in early 1999, joining the California-based Xtreme Pro Wrestling promotion. In 2000, Kronus aligned himself with the "Black Army" faction. He remained with XPW until leaving in 2001. During this period, Kronus appeared in the 2000 softcore bondage film Violence on Violence.^[5][8]

Kronus also helped develop and promote local Philadelphia, PA company Dangerously Intense Wrestling. During his time as champion he feuded with G.O.D.D., Method and The Sickness. Kronus held both the DIW World Heavyweight Title and Inner City Title.

In 2002, Kronus retired from professional wrestling, relocating to the Lakes Region in Sanbornton, New Hampshire. He temporarily came out of retirement in 2005, making two appearances with the ECW reunion promotion Hardcore Homecoming.^[7][11][12]

Death

Caiazzo was found dead in his fiancée Brandy Laundry's home in Laconia, New Hampshire on July 18, 2007, several days after he had undergone knee surgery. He was 38 years old. Caiazzo died in his sleep, with his death subsequently attributed to heart failure resulting from an enlarged heart. He was survived by his nine-year-old son, Gage Christian Caiazzo.^{[2][4][3][5][6][7][8]}

In wrestling

• Finishing moves
  • Kronus Driver (Pumphandle sitout scoop slam piledriver)
  • Kronus Driver II (Overhead gutwrench backbreaker rack dropped into a sitout scoop slam piledriver)
  • Multiple 450° splash variations
    • Diving
    • Imploding
    • Standing

• Signature moves
  • Air Kronus (Diving elbow drop to the outside of the ring)
  • Hurricane Kronus (Handspring back elbow)
  • Modified dragon sleeper
  • Missile dropkick
  • Multiple suplex variations
    • Dragon
    • Super
    • Swinging cradle
  • Powerbomb
  • Springboard leg drop

• With Perry Saturn
  • Double team finishing moves
    • Total Elimination
    • Elevated crossbody^[13]

• Managers
  • Rob Black
  • Lizzy Borden
  • Francine
  • Jason
  • Cassy Strayter

• Entrance music
  • "No Remorse" by Metallica
  • "Real Solution 9" by White Zombie
  • "Total Elimination" by Harry Slash and the Slashtones
  • "Wait and Bleed" by Slipknot

Championships and accomplishments

• Dangerously Intense Wrestling
  • DIW Heavyweight Champion (1 time)
  • DIW Inner City Champion (1 time)

• Extreme Championship Wrestling
  • ECW World Tag Team Championship (4 times) - with New Jack (1) and Perry Saturn (3)^[10]

• Mayhem Independent Wrestling
  • MIW Hardcore Championship (1 time, last)^[14]

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • PWI ranked him # 382 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI Years in 2003
  • PWI ranked him # 89 of the 100 best tag teams of the PWI Years in 2003 with Perry Saturn
• United States Wrestling Association
  • USWA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Perry Saturn^[9]

References

External links

• John Kronus at the Internet Movie Database