A Santino Marella appearance at WWE Clash in Italy was pitched within the company, with WrestleVotes Radio on Fightful Select reporting that the idea was floated in WWE creative.
Per the report, an idea was pitched within WWE creative to have former WWE Intercontinental Champion Santino Marella appear at the May 31 Clash in Italy Premium Live Event. There was no word on whether the pitch went anywhere.
The Santino-at-Clash-in-Italy idea has a natural storyline logic given the wrestler’s history with Italy. Marella, whose real name is Anthony Carelli, made his WWE debut during a live episode of Raw from Milan, Italy. Under the character of Santino Marella, a fan selected from the audience, he defeated then-Intercontinental Champion Umaga to win the title in his debut match.
Despite the on-screen Italian-stereotype character, Carelli is actually a Canadian wrestler born in Mississauga, Ontario. The Santino Marella character was billed from San Fili, Calabria, Italy.
Marella currently appears in TNA, where he works as the on-screen director of authority. Marella also returned to WWE on its NXT brand in 2025 as part of the partnership.
Marella’s broader WWE career spanned 11 years from 2005 to 2016. He won the Intercontinental Championship twice, the United States Championship once, and the WWE Tag Team Championship once. He was also involved in the famous Santina Marella storyline, where he played Santino’s twin sister and was crowned “Miss WrestleMania” at WrestleMania XXV.
The Clash in Italy card already features multiple matches, including Cody Rhodes vs GUNTHER for the Undisputed WWE Championship, Roman Reigns vs Jacob Fatu in Tribal Combat for the World Heavyweight Championship, Brock Lesnar vs Oba Femi, and Rhea Ripley vs Jade Cargill for the Women’s Championship.
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