Christopher John Bauman Jr. (July 13, 1982 – August 18, 2005) was an American

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

, better known by his ring name Chri$ Ca$h. Bauman wrestled in many

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...

promotions, but is known for his time in

Combat Zone Wrestling Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) is an American independent wrestling promotion. In 1998, John Zandig and five of his students, Ric Blade, T.C.K, Lobo (wrestler), Lobo, Nick Gage and Justice Pain, along with trainer Jon Dahmer, began to run professio ...

, where he was a CZW World Tag Team Champion. On August 18, 2005, Bauman was killed in a motorcycle accident.

Professional wrestling career

2001

Bauman began working for

(CZW) in 2001, after being trained at their training academy by Jon Dahmer. He made his debut, as "Chri$ Ca$h", at ''September Slam'' on September 8, 2001, in a

three-way dance Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

with GQ and

Ian Knoxx Ian or Iain is a name of Scottish Gaelic origin, derived from the Hebrew given name ( Yohanan, ') and corresponding to the English name John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename ''Iain''. It is a popular name i ...

, which Knoxx won. At ''They Said It Couldn't Be Done... Again'' on September 22, the three wrestlers were involved in a rematch, which Ca$h won. In another rematch a week later at ''Enough is Enough'', GQ won. At ''And Justice For All'' in October, Ca$h teamed with GQ to defeat Knoxx and

Chris Stylez Christopher Allen, better known by his stage name Chris Stylez, is a Canadian R&B recording artist, songwriter, and producer residing in New York City. Stylez' music has received over 50 million loops of his song "Who Is" on the social media ...

in a

tag team match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

. He began regularly teaming with GQ as "The New School", including an appearance at ''

Cage of Death III A cage is an enclosure often made of mesh, bars, or wires, used to confine, contain or protect something or someone. A cage can serve many purposes, including keeping an animal or person in captivity, capturing an animal or person, and displayi ...

'' when they competed in a three-way tag team match, which also included Knoxx and Stylez, and was won by VD (Jon Dahmer and

Eddie Valentine Thomas Weiss, better known by his ring name Eddie Valentine, is an American professional wrestler best known for his time in Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW). Professional wrestling career Independent circuit (1998-present) Weiss participated in the ...

2002

The start of 2002, however, saw Ca$h and GQ engage in a scripted rivalry, trading victories. Their third match at ''Out With Old In With The New'' in March went to a

no contest ' is a legal term that comes from the Latin phrase for "I do not wish to contend". It is also referred to as a plea of no contest or no defense. In criminal trials in certain United States jurisdictions, it is a plea where the defendant neithe ...

, and afterwards, neither Ca$h nor GQ appeared for CZW for over four months. When they returned on July 13 at ''Deja Vu'', it was as a team, defeating the teams of VD, Ian Knoxx and

A.J. Styles Allen Neal Jones (born June 2, 1977), better known by his ring name AJ Styles (also stylized as A.J. Styles), is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. Regarded as one of the best ...

, and

Hurricane Kid A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depen ...

and

Towel Boy Eric Tuttle (born July 15, 1982) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling from 1999 to 2001 under the ring name Towel Boy. He is also known for his appearances with inde ...

to earn a match for the

CZW World Tag Team Championship The CZW World Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship owned and copyrighted by the Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) promotion; it is contested for in their tag team division. It was created and debuted on Februa ...

later that night, which they lost to the defending champions, H8 Club. They continued teaming over the next few months, facing teams including

Sonjay Dutt Retesh Bhalla (born April 7, 1982) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a producer and manager. He is best known for his time with Total Nonstop ActionImpact Wrestling under the ring name Sonj ...

and Derek Frazier,

The Backseat Boyz The Backseat Boyz were a professional wrestling tag team that consisted of Trent Acid and Johnny Kashmere who competed in Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling Unplugged, Combat Zone Wrestling, Assault Championship Wrestling, the Premier Wrestling Feder ...

, and the

Softcore Connection Soft core or Softcore may refer to: * Softcore microprocessor, microprocessor implemented using logic synthesis and perhaps other circuits * Soft core (synthesis), a digital circuit that can be wholly implemented using logic synthesis * Soft rock, ...

. On September 28 at '' Sanctioned in Blood'', Ca$h defeated Ruckus and Sonjay Dutt in a

ladder match A ladder match is a type of match in professional wrestling, most commonly one in which an item (usually a title belt) is hung above the ring, and the winner is the contestant who climbs a ladder and retrieves the item. The ladder itself becom ...

. This signalled Ca$h's first major foray into singles competition, taking on Ruckus, Dutt and

Jody Fleisch Jerome Fleisch (born 2 April 1980) is an English professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Jody Fleisch. He is best known for his work with the Frontier Wrestling Alliance, One Pro Wrestling and Real Quality Wrestling. He is currentl ...

in both singles and three-way matches. At the end of 2002, Ca$h won the CZW award for

finishing move Finishing can refer to: *Finishing (whisky), a whisky making method that involves aging of multiple casks * Finishing (bookbinding), the process of embellishing a book * Finishing (manufacturing), processes that are applied to a workpiece's surfac ...

of the year.

2003

In 2003, Ca$h began challenging for the

CZW World Junior Heavyweight Championship The CZW World Junior Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling junior heavyweight championship owned by the Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) promotion. The championship was created and debuted on February 19, 1999 at CZW's Opening Night e ...

, losing to Dutt in a number one contenders match in January. In Dutt's match for the championship against Ruckus, however, Ca$h was the

special referee In law, a special referee acts as a judge on matters of fact only. Explanation In many instances, the interpretation of the specific statutes or case law relevant to a dispute is absolutely clear. The uncertainty between the parties lies in th ...

, and he attacked both wrestlers, before declaring the match a no contest. A match Ca$h then had with Ruckus then ended in a

double disqualification Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

, before he competed in the Best of the Best 3 tournament, where he was eliminated in the first round. On May 10, Ca$h unsuccessfully challenged Ruckus for the Junior Heavyweight Championship, before returning to his feud with GQ, that saw Ca$h lose a singles match to GQ, before eliminating him from a

gauntlet match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

. On October 4 at ''Pain in the Rain 2'', Ca$h attempted to help

Nick Gage Nicholas William Wilson (born September 22, 1980), better known by his ring name Nick Gage, is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to Game Changer Wrestling (GCW), where he is the current GCW World Champion in his record-setting th ...

, who was being attacked by Nate Hatred and

Trent Acid Michael Verdi (November 12, 1980 – June 18, 2010), best known by his ring name Trent Acid, was an American professional wrestler. He worked as a tag team wrestler for most of his career, primarily as part of The Backseat Boyz with Johnny K ...

, but ended up being

powerbomb A powerbomb is a professional wrestling throw in which an opponent is lifted (usually so that they are sitting on the wrestler's shoulders) and then slammed back-first down to the mat. The standard powerbomb sees an opponent first placed in a st ...

ed over the ring ropes through a

table Table may refer to: * Table (furniture), a piece of furniture with a flat surface and one or more legs * Table (landform), a flat area of land * Table (information), a data arrangement with rows and columns * Table (database), how the table data ...

to the floor. Ca$h then took a hiatus from CZW, returning at ''

Cage of Death V The Cage of Death is Combat Zone Wrestling's biggest show since 1999. It always features the Cage of Death match, a steel cage with various weapons littered in the cage. Electrified cage walls, cacti, tables, light tubes, glass, thumbtacks, bas ...

'' in December, to face Joker in a ladder match, which he lost. The match, which was originally supposed to be a tag team match also involving Deranged and Azriael but was changed as Deranged and Azireal were not at the arena in time, was later described as "absolutely psychotic", and it was the match that began to get Ca$h mainstream attention.

2004-2005

In 2004 began with a loss for Ca$h in a four-way

tables Table may refer to: * Table (furniture), a piece of furniture with a flat surface and one or more legs * Table (landform), a flat area of land * Table (information), a data arrangement with rows and columns * Table (database), how the table data ...

and ladders match at the ''Street Fight 2K4'' show, which was won by Sabian, and in which Joker and Ruckus also participated. After the match, Sabian and Ruckus attacked Ca$h and Joker, setting up a tag team match for the next show. Ca$h and Joker lost the match after Joker turned on Ca$h and attacked him until

Jimmy Jacobs Christopher Scoville (born February 17, 1984) is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Jimmy Jacobs. He was recently signed to Impact Wrestling as a member of the creative team and producer. He is best known for his 12 ...

and Dutt saved him. This resulted in a six-man tag team elimination tables match at ''Overdrive'' in March, which Ruckus, Joker and Sabian won after eliminating all the members of the other team, Ca$h, Jacobs and Dutt. Ca$h continued competing for CZW during the summer, alternately teaming with or facing GQ. He also competed in the Best of the Best IV tournament, but was eliminated in the first round. At ''Tournament of Death'' Ca$h competed in his first

deathmatch Deathmatch, also known as free-for-all, is a gameplay mode integrated into many shooter games, including first-person shooter (FPS), and real-time strategy (RTS) video games, where the goal is to kill (or "frag") the other players' characters a ...

, losing to

JC Bailey Joseph Carl Bailey Jr. (August 23, 1983 – August 30, 2010) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name J. C. Bailey. He wrestled for numerous American-based professional wrestling promotions including Combat Zone Wres ...

. In September, Ca$h won a match allowing him to pick the members of a team for ''

Cage of Death VI A cage is an enclosure often made of mesh, bars, or wires, used to confine, contain or protect something or someone. A cage can serve many purposes, including keeping an animal or person in captivity, capturing an animal or person, and displayin ...

''. This was followed by CZW owner

John Zandig John Corson (born April 4, 1971), better known by the ring name John Zandig, is an American professional wrestler and promoter. He is the founder and former owner of the promotion Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW). Early life Corson was born in Sewel ...

that Ca$h would be the captain of one of the team in the Cage of Death match, and Ca$h chose Bailey as his first team member. At the following show, ''Breaking Point: Let the Kaos Begin'', Ca$h and Bailey won a CZW World Tag Team Championship match against The Blackout after winning a tag team gauntlet match. They originally won the match, but the decision was reversed once it was determined that Ca$h, who had made the

pin A pin is a device used for fastening objects or material together. Pin or PIN may also refer to: Computers and technology * Personal identification number (PIN), to access a secured system ** PIN pad, a PIN entry device * PIN, a former Dutch ...

, was not the legal man. At ''Cage of Death VI'', Team Ca$h, consisting of Ca$h, Bailey, Nate Webb, and SeXXXy Eddy, defeated Team Blackout, which consisted of Ruckus, Sabian,

Eddie Kingston Edward Moore (born December 12, 1981), better known by his ring name Eddie Kingston, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Kingston started his wrestling career in 2002, and has wrestled for numerous ...

, and Jack Evans, to win CZW World Tag Team Championship. The match contained a number of

spots Spot or SPOT may refer to: Places * Spot, North Carolina, a community in the United States * The Spot, New South Wales, a locality in Sydney, Australia * South Pole Traverse, sometimes called the South Pole Overland Traverse People * Spot (produ ...

which were later described as "the psychotic daredevil spots for which Cash was known throughout his all-too-short career", including a spot where Ca$h performed his finishing move on Sabian off of the scaffolding surrounding the cage through four tables to land in the second row of the audience. After a successful title defense against

Excalibur Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in t ...

and

Super Dragon Daniel Caine Lyon (born June 8, 1980), better known by his ring name Super Dragon, is an American professional wrestler. Beginning his career in 1997, he has worked for companies such as All Pro Wrestling, Chikara, Combat Zone Wrestling, Ring ...

, Team Ca$h, consisting of Ca$h and Nate Webb, lost the championship to the H8 Club (Nick Gage and

Justice Pain Christopher Wilson (May 16, 1978 – January 24, 2020) was an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name, Justice Pain. Pain was best known for his time in Combat Zone Wrestling, as well as Xtreme Pro Wrestling and Pro Wrest ...

) at ''Only the Strong: Scarred for Life'' in February. This championship loss was his last match in CZW, as he had been scheduled to wrestle JC Bailey for the

CZW Ultraviolent Underground Championship The CZW Ultraviolent Underground Championship was a professional hardcore wrestling championship owned by the Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) promotion. The title was introduced on February 5, 2005 at CZW's Only the Strong event. It has since been re ...

in March, but was forced to pull out of the match after an automobile accident. He did not make his return to CZW before his death in August.

Death

On August 18, 2005, Bauman was killed as the result of a motorcycle accident near his home. He had been the passenger on a motorcycle driven by his cousin. A

Ford Taurus The Ford Taurus is an automobile that was manufactured by the Ford Motor Company in the United States from the 1986 to 2019 model years. Introduced in late 1985 for the 1986 model year, six generations were produced over 34 years; a brief hiat ...

turned in front of the motorcycle, causing it to strike the car on the driver's side of the vehicle. Bauman and his cousin both died at the scene; the driver of the car died en route to a nearby hospital.Zatzariny Jr., Tim
"Mystery surrounds crash; Questions remain in Glassboro accident that left three dead"
''

Courier-Post The ''Courier-Post'' is a morning daily newspaper that serves South Jersey in the Delaware Valley. It is based in Cherry Hill, New Jersey and serves most of Burlington, Camden, and Gloucester counties. The paper has 30,313 daily paid subscr ...

'', September 19, 2005. Accessed April 5, 2021. "Christopher Bauman Jr. was anxious to get back to his passion: professional wrestling. His cousin Jeremy was proud of the new motorcycle he'd purchased with the proceeds from a home he bought, fixed up and sold. Daisy Gwin had a giving heart, regularly helping those in need or less fortunate. On the night of Aug. 18, their lives collided at a residential intersection here. A motorcycle on which the Baumans were riding broadsided a car being driven by Gwin, killing all three."

Championships and accomplishments

( 1 time)¹ – with SeXXXy Eddy, Nate Webb and

J. C. Bailey Joseph Carl Bailey Jr. (August 23, 1983 – August 30, 2010) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name J. C. Bailey. He wrestled for numerous American-based professional wrestling promotions including Combat Zone Wrestl ...

¹Team Ca$h defended the championship under the

Freebird Rule The Fabulous Freebirds were a professional wrestling tag team who attained fame in the 1980s, performing into the 1990s. The team usually consisted of three wrestlers, although in different situations and points in its history, just two performed ...

References

External links

Online World of Wrestling profile

WrestleView obituary

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cash, Chris 1982 births 2005 deaths American male professional wrestlers Motorcycle road incident deaths People from Glassboro, New Jersey Professional wrestlers from Florida Professional wrestlers from New Jersey Road incident deaths in New Jersey Sportspeople from Gloucester County, New Jersey Sportspeople from Orlando, Florida 21st-century professional wrestlers