Impact Wrestling News: Santino Marella appears at Bound for Glory 2017
The Milan Miracle was seen in the crowd at Bound for Glory 2017
What's the story?
Former WWE Intercontinental and Tag Team Champion Santino Marella appeared in the crowd at Impact Wrestling's Bound for Glory pay-per-view.
In case you didn't know
The Santino Marella story is one of the more peculiar in modern wrestling history. Santino, real name Anthony Carelli, was signed to WWE in 2005, and spent the majority of his time in initial time in development with a Paul Heyman-inspired Russian shooter gimmick. This all went out of the window when he made it to the main roster however.
Boris Alexiev became Santino Marella, a fan-turned-wrestler who managed to defeat Umaga for the WWE Intercontinental Championship on his first night. The Milan Miracle ebbed and flowed for a few years before settling into a role as a comedy wrestler, a role he would fill for the rest of his active years.
Injuries piled up over time, and Santino announced his retirement in July 2014. He was eventually released from his WWE contract in May 2016.
The heart of the matter
Santino has been keeping himself busy since leaving WWE. He runs Battle Arts Academy in Ontario, a huge multi-use facility intended for mixed martial arts and professional wrestling training, along with working as a sports analyst for Sportsnet 360.
Bound for Glory, Impact Wrestling's WrestleMania, took place in Ottawa this year as part of Impact's slow move to its new home north of the border. With a number of former WWE superstars on Impact's roster, it was no real surprise to see Santino Marella in the crowd during the show.
It seems as though Santino was there as a fan only, as his appearance wasn't followed up on in any way whatsoever. The days of Impact signing up anyone and everyone to leave WWE are long gone.
What's next?
With Impact Wrestling's future still in some form of limbo, it is unlikely that we'll see Santino Marella full time in the company any time soon. Marella is also retired, so it can be assumed that this was little more than an ex-wrestler turning up to support his peers.
Author's take
Oh how times have changed! There was an era when a former WWE superstar was a shoo-in to arrive and appear in TNA, but the fall of the latter company has changed the landscape. Santino seems to be enjoying his retirement, at least when he isn't arguing with Jim Cornette, and long may that continue.