20 Former WWE Stars Who Should Return For Brand Split 2016

16. Nunzio

shawn Davari
WWE.com

As Little Guido, James Maritato spent over a decade in ECW, helping give the promotion a reputation not just as a hardcore wrestling paradise, but as a place where talented stars could ply their trade as wrestlers. The Billy Robinson-trained Guido may have had a comedy gimmick, but he still got to show what he could do in the ring.

In WWE, he was reintroduced as Nunzio, but he still had the same Italian-American stereotype gimmick. He reformed the Full Blooded Italians stable with Johnny Stamboli and Chuck Palumbo, then captured the Cruiserweight Title twice. He joined the ECW brand when it was revived in 2006, then was released in 2008.

That was it for Nunzio in WWE - apart from a brief run as a referee from 2010 to 2011. Still, Maritato continues wrestling to this day, and though he's in his mid-40s, his highly-technical, submission-based style ensures that he can compete at a high level despite his age. Nunzio could easily return to WWE as an undercard talent, working with up-and-coming stars to help them improve.

Contributor
Contributor

Scott Fried is a Slammy Award-winning* writer living and working in New York City. He has been following/writing about professional wrestling for many years and is a graduate of Lance Storm's Storm Wrestling Academy. Follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/scottfried. *Best Crowd of the Year, 2013