 Marella in September 2025 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | Anthony Carelli (1974-03-14)March 14, 1974 (age 51)[6] Mississauga, Ontario, Canada[7] |
| Alma mater | Concordia University |
Spouse | |
| Children | 3, includingArianna Grace |
| Website | www.battleartsacademy.ca |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Anthony Carelli[1] Boris Alexiev[2] Johnny Geo Basco[3] Santina Marella[2] Santino Marella[4] Sam Teamo[5] |
| Billed height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)[1] |
| Billed weight | 233 lb (106 kg)[4] |
| Billed from | San Fili,Calabria, Italy[4] |
| Trained by | Ohio Valley Wrestling[1] |
| Debut | March 2, 2003[1] |
Anthony Carelli (born March 14, 1974) is a Canadianprofessional wrestler, better known by thering nameSantino Marella.[8] He is signed toTotal Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where he works as theon-screen director of authority. He also appears in partner promotionWWE, on itsNXT brand. He is the founder of and instructor at Battle Arts Academy, a martial arts and professional wrestling training facility inMississauga,Ontario, and the official ambassador ofJudo Canada.[9]
He is best known for his 11-year tenure withWWE. Carelli made his WWE debut during a live episode ofRaw from Milan, Italy. Under the character of Santino Marella, a fan selected from the audience, he defeated theIntercontinental ChampionUmaga, winning the title in his debut match. During the following years, he would win the Intercontinental title one more time, theUnited States Championship once and theWWE Tag Team Championship once. He was also involved in a storyline where he worked as Santina Marella, Santino's twin sister. Carelli was released from WWE in 2016. After his WWE departure, he opened Battle Arts Academy and worked forImpact Wrestling under his real name. In 2017, he made sporadic matches on the independent circuit, as well as occasional appearances in WWE. In 2023, Carelli made his return to Impact, now under the TNA banner and performing under the Santino Marella name and gimmick. In 2025, with WWE and TNA having a partnership between the two promotions, Carelli returned to WWE on its NXT brand.
Carelli is known for his humorous gimmick as Santino Marella, an Italian stereotype, often being involved in comedic segments, having several on-screen relationships with fellow wrestlers, as well as being crowned "Miss WrestleMania" atWrestleMania XXV disguised as "Santina Marella." The Santino Marella character was awardedBest Gimmick in 2007 and 2008 by theWrestling Observer Newsletter.
Anthony Carelli was born on March 14, 1974 inMississauga,Ontario, Canada. He is ofItalian andMétis descent.[10] His paternal family emigrated fromSan Fili (inprovince of Cosenza),Calabria to Canada. Carelli attended St Basil's Catholic Elementary School, and laterPhilip Pocock Catholic Secondary School andConcordia University. He trained injudo at the age of nine and also competed inhigh school wrestling, winning the Region of Peel Secondary School Athletic Association (ROPSSAA) Tournament, back-to-back as a junior and a senior.[11]
Anthony Carelli started his career on the Ontarioindependent circuit as Johnny Geo Basco, debuting with a disqualification win over Xhibit in the opening match of a Ring Wars show inOrangeville, Ontario, on August 17, 2002.[12] In the second half of 2004, Carelli wrestled four matches forBattlarts in Japan, as Johnny Geo Basco.[13] By this time he also competed inmixed martial arts, in which he claimed in 2006 to have a 6–1 record,[14] although only one fight is confirmed.[15]
In 2005, Anthony Carelli (as Johnny Geo Basco) began training atOhio Valley Wrestling (OVW), adevelopmental territory for World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). In July, during astoryline where he was supposed to act afraid ofThe Boogeyman, but instead laughed, Anthony Carelli was shouted at and slapped byJim Cornette, OVW's headbooker and co-owner. This incident led to Cornette being fired as OVW booker by WWE.[3][16]
Under OVW's new booker,Paul Heyman, Anthony Carelli adopted thegimmick of Boris Alexiev, a Russianshootfighter/mixed martial artist.[17][18] On October 29, he lost his debut OVW match, teaming withAaron Stevens against Chet the Jet andChris Cage.[19] Alexiev made his TV debut on April 12, 2006,managed by his "comrade", Mr. Strongko and defeating Mo Sexton.[20] He was booked to dominate opponents withstiff strikes and submission style wrestling.[21] He had a 10-second win over a wrestler named Dewey.[20] He signed a developmental contract with WWE on August 11, 2006,[22] and continued training in OVW.
On January 24, 2007, Alexiev won theOVW Television Championship from Mike Kruel, who was defending in place of champion Eddie Kraven.[23] He lost it back to Kruel on February 7, and regained it from him on March 14. Three days later, he dropped it toShawn Spears.[23] He was called up to the WWE roster a month later.
Anthony Carelli debuted asSantino Marella (a homage to WWE Hall of FamerRobert "Gorilla Monsoon" Marella)[24] on the April 16, 2007 episode ofRaw from Milan, Italy. He was presented as a fan thatVince McMahon selected as an opponent forUmaga. The unknown Marella scored a surprising upset, and won theWWE Intercontinental Championship with an assist fromBobby Lashley. The next day, WWE.com posted a profile on Marella, saying he was an Italian national who moved to Canada as a child and returned to his native country a few times each year to visit family. The profile claimed that he moved to the United States to pursue a wrestling career with WWE.[4] Shortly after winning the Intercontinental title, Marellafeuded withChris Masters, narrowly retaining the title in his first defenses.[25][26] On July 2, he dropped the title to Umaga,[27] after defeating him on June 24, atVengeance: Night of Champions, by disqualification.
Marella then began a gradualheel turn and became increasingly jealous of his girlfriend,Maria. Over several weeks, they appeared together in a series of segments onRaw, including two "game show" skits, hosted byGeneral ManagerWilliam Regal, which resulted in retired wrestlerRon Simmons winning a date with Maria, to Santino's dismay.[28][29] Marella began a publicity campaign against theWWE Films production,The Condemned, as its DVD release neared.[30] He was eventually confronted by the film's star,Steve Austin, who argued the film's merits before delivering aStone Cold Stunner to Marella and hosing him and Maria with beer.[31] During the Austin angle, Marella repeatedly mocked him and his catchphrases in humorously broken English,[30] starting a new comedic trend in his gimmick. After a short angle withJerry Lawler,[32][33] which included Lawler hitting his signature fist drop maneuver after Marella lost a match to the returningChris Jericho on the November 26 episode ofRaw, Marella formed atag team withCarlito.[34][35]
Around this time, Maria was offered a photo shoot forPlayboy magazine. After unsuccessfully persuading her to decline it, Marella tried to sabotage the cover unveiling (an in-ring segment ofRaw), causing Maria to dump him.[36][37] AtWrestleMania XXIV, Maria had a "Playboy BunnyManiaLumberjack match." Santino interfered near the end of the match, pulling Maria off of a pin, and was punched by Jerry Lawler. After the match (which Maria's team lost), he wasclotheslined by guest "Master of Ceremonies",Snoop Dogg.[38] The next night onRaw, Maria wrestled Marella. Seven other women ganged up on him, and held his legs apart for Maria to headbutt his testicles and pin him. This ended their feud. Marella and Carlito then feuded withHardcore Holly andCody Rhodes over theWorld Tag Team Championship. During a title match between them,Roddy Piper distracted Marella, who was then pinned. This sparked a rivalry with Piper, which included a confrontation onJimmy Kimmel Live!.
On the July 14, 2008 episode ofRaw, Marella lost toBeth Phoenix, who had answered his open challenge.[39] On the next episode, after he lost another open challenge to the returningD'Lo Brown, Marella and Phoenix kissed, both looking confused afterward.[40] Over the next few weeks, they became a parody of a "power couple", soon called "Glamarella" (aportmanteau of Phoenix's nickname, "Glamazon", and "Marella"). AtSummerSlam, they wrestled Intercontinental championKofi Kingston andWWE Women's ChampionMickie James in a mixed-tag match with both titles on the line. Phoenix pinned James after hitting her finisher, theGlam Slam, giving Marella his second Intercontinental championship.[41] Marella then sought to become the "greatest Intercontinental champion of all the times" by beatingThe Honky Tonk Man's record 64-week reign. Over the weeks, a "Honk-A-Meter" graphic informed viewers of his progress during his matches and segments (at one point Marella even used a "Honk-a-Perfect-Mountie-Meter" comparing his reign to the combination ofThe Honky Tonk Man, Mr Perfect and The Mountie's reigns). AtCyber Sunday, Marella was disqualified in a title match with The Honky Tonk Man (who fans voted for over other former championsRoddy Piper andGoldust).[42] On the November 10 episode ofRaw, after a reign of twelve weeks and one day, Marella lost the title toWilliam Regal.[43]
In January 2009, Marella entered theRoyal Rumble, at #28. He was eliminated byKane after (officially) 1.9 seconds, breakingThe Warlord's1989 record for shortest Royal Rumble appearance by a tenth of a second. Marella's humour proved popular with audiences, and he turned face again beforeWrestleMania 25, expressing his desire to be crowned the inaugural "Miss WrestleMania" in a 25-woman battle royale at the event. He challenged Mickie James to a match with one arm tied behind his back, with a battle royal spot on the line, but he lost. The next week, in order to "prove" his eligibility, he revealed he was wearing amankini. Instead, he was attacked by most of the female roster. Nevertheless, at WrestleMania, he won the battle royal, competing indrag as Santina Marella (Santino Marella's self-alleged twin sister), last eliminating Beth Phoenix and Melina.[44] Marella successfully defended the Miss Wrestlemania title against Phoenix atBacklash in three seconds, with help fromThe Great Khali. On the May 18Raw, Marella lost the title toVickie Guerrero, and won it back on June 7, atExtreme Rules, by defeating Vickie andChavo Guerrero Jr. in a handicaphog pen match.[45][46] On the June 22Raw, Raw's new owner,Donald Trump, fired Santina and the Miss WrestleMania title was abandoned.[47]
AtWrestleMania XXVI, Santino Marella competed in the 26-man battle royale dark match, won byYoshi Tatsu.[48] He then tried to form a tag team withVladimir Kozlov, who repeatedly refused the offer. On the May 31 episode ofRaw, Kozlov interfered in Marella's match, helping him win.[49] On the July 19Raw, they finally teamed to defeat William Regal andZack Ryder.[50] AtNight of Champions, Marella and Kozlov wrestled a Tag Team Turmoil match for theUnified Tag Team Championship, won by Cody Rhodes andDrew McIntyre.[51]
On the October 11Raw, he defeated Zack Ryder to qualify for Team Raw atBragging Rights, against TeamSmackDown. He was the first of seven Team Raw members eliminated, pinned byTyler Reks.[52] On the October 25Raw, afterSheamus had called him an "embarrassment" for being the first man eliminated at Bragging Rights, Marella scored an upset victory over the former two-timeWWE Champion. They wrestled twice more, both matches ending withJohn Morrison saving Marella from Sheamus' post-match assault.[53]
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On the November 15Raw, Marella and Kozlov became number one contenders for the WWE Tag Team Championship by defeatingThe Usos. They unsuccessfully challengedThe Nexus (Justin Gabriel andHeath Slater) for the title atSurvivor Series.[54] They won the Tag Team Championship in a four-way elimination tag match on the December 6Raw, beating The Nexus, The Usos andMark Henry and Yoshi Tatsu, afterJohn Cena distracted Gabriel, allowing Marella to hit his Cobra finisher. After celebrating in the ring,Tamina kissed Santino, starting a relationship between them.[55] She began accompanying Marella to his matches. Marella and Kozlov retained the Tag Team title atTLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, when Gabriel and Slater were disqualified after interference from Nexus memberMichael McGillicutty.[56] The next night onRaw, Marella and Tamina beatTed DiBiase Jr. andMaryse in a mixed-tag match. On January 30, 2011, Marella entered theRoyal Rumble at number 37. He was one of the final two wrestlers, before being eliminated byAlberto Del Rio.[57] AtElimination Chamber, Marella and Kozlov lost the Tag Team title to Gabriel and Slater.[58] AtWrestleMania XXVII, Marella teamed withBig Show, Kane, and Kofi Kingston (replacing the injured Kozlov) to defeat The Corre (Slater, Gabriel,Ezekiel Jackson andWade Barrett) in an eight-man tag match.[59] Marella's relationship with Tamina ended when she wasdrafted to SmackDown.[60] On August 5, Kozlov was released from WWE, ending the team.[61]
Marella began teaming with Zack Ryder on the July 21Superstars, beating Tag Team ChampionsDavid Otunga and Michael McGillicutty in a non-title match. On the August 1Raw, Otunga and McGillicutty won the rematch. On September 1, Carelli injured his left shoulder in a car accident before ahouse show inPuerto Rico, rendering him inactive for several weeks.[62] Marella returned on the October 3Raw, defeatingJinder Mahal.[63] On the October 31 episode, Marella defeatedJack Swagger with a roll-up pin after he spit water given to him by special guest,Beaker ofThe Muppets, in Swagger's face.[64][65] The followingRaw, Swagger defeated Marella by submission. On the January 6, 2012 episode ofSmackDown, Marella defeated Drew McIntyre to become Smackdown General ManagerTheodore Long's assistant.[66] Marella teamed with Yoshi Tatsu on the January 27SmackDown and"Hacksaw" Jim Duggan on the February 3 episode to face Tag Team ChampionsPrimo & Epico, losing both times.[67][68] On the February 17SmackDown, Marella won a battle royal to replaceRandy Orton in the Elimination Chamber match for theWorld Heavyweight Championship atElimination Chamber.[69] At Elimination Chamber, he was the last man eliminated byDaniel Bryan.[70]
On the March 5Raw, Marella defeated Jack Swagger to win theUnited States Championship. On the following episode ofSmackDown, Marella successfully defended the title against Swagger in a steel cage match, by escaping through the cage door.[71] AtWrestleMania XXVIII on April 1, Marella was the team captain of Team Teddy, which lost to Team Johnny, after interference fromEve.[72] The following night onRaw, Marella successfully defended the title against Swagger andDolph Ziggler in a Triple Threat Match,[73] and against David Otunga on the April 16 episode.[74] In the pre-show ofExtreme Rules on April 23, Marella defeatedThe Miz to retain the United States Championship.[75] The following night onRaw, Marella unsuccessfully tried to earn a WWE Championship match atOver the Limit in aBeat the Clock Challenge against The Miz.[76] Later that month, Marella briefly reunited with Zack Ryder, facing teams including Primo and Epico,Curt Hawkins and Tyler Reks andTitus O'Neil andDarren Young.[77][78][79] Marella then feuded with Alberto Del Rio's ring announcerRicardo Rodriguez,[80][81][82] leading to a non-titleTuxedo match on June 17 atNo Way Out, which Marella won.[83] On the June 25Raw, Marella successfully defended the United States Championship against Jack Swagger.[84] Four days later onSmackDown, he and Intercontinental ChampionChristian defeated David Otunga and Cody Rhodes to qualify for theWorld Heavyweight Championship Money in the Bank ladder match atMoney in the Bank,[85] which was won by Dolph Ziggler.[86] On the July 27 and August 3 episodes ofSmackDown, Marella lost toAntonio Cesaro in non-title matches.[87][88] On August 19, on theSummerSlam pre-show, Marella lost the United States Championship to Cesaro.[89] Marella lost his rematch for the title on the September 3 episode ofRaw.[90] On the September 21 episode ofSmackDown, Marella defeated Cesaro in a non-title match to earn another shot at the United States Championship.[91] The title rematch took place the following week onSmackDown, where Marella failed in his title challenge.[92]
On the debut episode ofWWE Main Event on October 3, Marella and Zack Ryder entered a Tag Team Championship tournament, and defeatedJustin Gabriel andTyson Kidd in the quarterfinals.[93] The following week onRaw, they were eliminated in the semifinals by eventual winners Team Rhodes Scholars (Cody Rhodes andDamien Sandow).[94] After this loss Marella and Ryder began a feud with 3MB's members (Heath Slater,Drew McIntyre andJinder Mahal) which culminated in the Pre-show of Survivor Series, in which Slater and Mahal defeated them.[95] On the December 26 episode ofMain Event, Santino Marella participated in a 20-man battle royal for the number one contender of Cesaro's United States title and split from his partnerZack Ryder, when eliminated him. Successively Marella was eliminated byWade Barrett from the battle-royal. Marella then took a leave of absence due to a neck injury.[96]
Marella returned on January 27, 2013, at theRoyal Rumble, entering the Royal Rumble match at number 5 before being the first man eliminated by Cody Rhodes.[97] After a two-month absence, Marella returned toRaw on the April 1 episode, losing to Mark Henry.[98] Marella returned on the September 9 episode ofRaw, defeating Antonio Cesaro.[99] Marella then began a feud with The Real Americans (Cesaro and Jack Swagger), then Marella began to align himself withThe Great Khali andHornswoggle in this feud. He defeated Swagger on the September 20 episode ofSmackDown and he defeated Cesaro on the September 30 episode ofRaw.[100][101] On October 6 atBattleground, Marella and Khali were defeated by Cesaro and Swagger in a tag team match.[102] They were defeated again by The Real Americans on the following episode ofRaw, ending their feud.
On the February 3, 2014 episode ofRaw, Marella returned to television and invitedEmma into the ring from the crowd to have a "dance-off" withSummer Rae, starting a feud with her andFandango. Emma would go on to win the dance competition against Rae the February 21 episode ofSmackDown. AtWrestleMania XXX, Marella participated in theAndré the Giant Memorial Battle Royal and eliminating The Miz, before being eliminated byAlberto Del Rio. The following night onRaw, Marella and Emma defeated Fandango and Rae in a mixed match to end their feud. On the May 5 episode ofRaw, Marella participated in a 20-man battle royal forDean Ambrose's United States Championship, but he was eliminated by RybAxel (Ryback andCurtis Axel). On the June 17 episode of Main Event, Marella was defeated byRusev in what would be his final match in WWE until 2020.
After a third neck injury, Marella declared his retirement on July 6 at ahouse show inToronto, Ontario.[103][104] On September 16, 2014, Marella underwent successful surgery on his neck.[105] Marella made several appearances throughout 2014 and 2015, including one appearance on the November 24 episode ofRaw to promote his new movie,Jingle All the Way 2 with co-starLarry the Cable Guy, serving as the Guest General Manager for the December 5 episode ofSmackDown and hosted his own Royal Rumble lottery on the 20 January, exclusively on the WWE Network. Marella made his return to WWE television on the December 21 episode ofRaw to present an award at theSlammy Awards. The next night, onSuper SmackDown, Marella appeared in a backstage segment. On May 6, 2016, Carelli was released from WWE along with seven other superstars; the reason was due to an injury.[106][107]
On July 22, 2019, Marella appeared at the Raw Reunion show in a backstage skit. Marella would make a surprise appearance during the2020 women's Royal Rumble match under his character of Santina Marella, where he entered at 29, becoming the first male to enter a Women's Royal Rumble match before he eliminated himself via "The Cobra" after being startled and intimidated byNatalya andBeth Phoenix.
On June 17, 2017, Marella announced that he would come out of retirement for one last match for Destiny World Wrestling, which operates out of his Battle Arts Academy facilities, on August 27. Marella had announced that he would be teaming up withAlberto El Patrón against RJ City and Stone Rockwell. In light of El Patron's legal troubles, he was announced to be replaced in the match byChavo Guerrero Jr. After the match, Marella formally announced the end of his in-ring career.[108]
In July 2019, Marella returned to the ring at a Battle Arts Academy show, wrestling in an MMA inspired gimmick.[109] On September 14, 2019, he appeared live inJosh Barnett's Bloodsport II as himself, Anthony Carelli.[110]
On November 5, 2017, Carelli appeared in the audience forImpact Wrestling'sBound for Glory event. Carelli, still collaborating with Impact Wrestling, co-hostedBehind the Lights program on Twitch.[111] On July 23, 2018, he appeared at an Impact Wrestling television taping in the corner of Dustin Quicksilver (representing his Battle Arts Academy). Quicksilver lost toAustin Aries after Carelli threw in the towel on his behalf. Following this, he got in a confrontation with Aries, resulting in Carelli hitting Aries with a low blow.[112]
On March 5, 2022, Carelli returned to Impact Wrestling for theirSacrifice event, doing commentary alongsideTom Hannifan andMatthew Rehwoldt for theImpact World Championship main event betweenMoose andHeath.[113] On January 13, 2023, atHard to Kill, Carelli made his return under his previous ringname Santino Marella, performing as the on-screenImpact Director of Authority.[114] On the April 6 episode ofImpact!, Marella was mysteriously attacked backstage.[115][116] WithSami Callihan being suspected behind the attack as part of his initiation intoThe Design, Marella teamed up withDirty Dango andImpact Digital Media ChampionJoe Hendry on April 16, atRebellion, to face and ultimately defeat the Design.[117][118] On the May 18 episode ofImpact!, it was revealed that Dango was Marella's assailant.[119][120]
AtVictory Road September 13, 2024, Marella appeared on-screen with his daughter, theNXT and the now renamed Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) liaisonArianna Grace,[121] for the first time in their career.[122] On the May 29, 2025 episode ofImpact!, Marella teamed with Grace for the first time, where they lost toRobert Stone andVictoria Crawford in amixed tag team match.[123] AtAgainst All Odds on June 6, Grace accompanied Marella in his match victory against Stone for the TNA Director of Authority position in Grace's final appearance for TNA.[124]
AtNXT Vengeance Day on February 15, 2025, Marella made his on-screen return to WWE as the TNA Director of Authority in a segment with NXT General ManagerAva, and again on May 27th to announce a title match betweenMike Santana and newTNA World Champion,Trick Williams.[125]On the July 22, 2025 episode of NXT, Marella interrupted a promo byNXT North American ChampionEthan Page to announce that he would challenge Page for the North American Championship the following week. On July 29, Marella wrestled his first WWE match in 11 years under the Santino Marella character against Ethan Page, but was unsuccessful in winning the title.[126]
Early in his professional wrestling career, Carelli trained and wrestled at the originalBattlarts in Japan. He, along withkung fu practitioner Steven J. Wong and fitness magazine publisher Terry Frendo, opened a 15,000 square foot multi-use facility and gym inMississauga, Ontario called 'Battle Arts Academy' in September 2013. It is for general strength and conditioning, as well as for training inmixed martial arts and professional wrestling taught by the original Battlarts founder, Yuki Ishikawa.[127] In 2015, Carelli trained athletes from Venezuela for the Panamerican Games 2015.[128]
In 2014, Carelli and his partner Dan Garneau founded and sponsored Canadian junior ice hockey team, Milton Battle Arts Cobras.[129][130][131] The team was part ofWorld United Hockey League.
In November 2016, Carelli joined theSportsnet 360 Aftermath panel as an analyst.[132] On May 2, 2018, Carelli debuted the weekly showBehind the Lights, alongside co-host, Destiny World Wrestling owner George Iceman on the official Impact Wrestling Twitch channel.[133]
Being a Shodan for more than 30 years, Carelli is the judo instructor in Battle Arts Academy. Aside from being a commentator for the International Judo Federation,[110] he was namedJudo Canada's first official ambassador in November 2019.[134]
Carelli has a daughter from his previous marriage to Petrina, Bianca, who works as professional wrestler under the ring nameArianna Grace. Carelli married bikini fitness competitor Anna Babij, in November 2015.[135] Carelli is a member of theMétis Nation of Ontario.[10]
| 1 match | 0 wins | 1 loss |
| By knockout | 0 | 1 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 0–1 | Takashi Ishino | KO (punch) | GCM CanD | October 24, 2004 | 1 | 0:26 | Tokyo,Japan | [15] |
| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2014 | Scooby-Doo! WrestleMania Mystery | Santino Marella | |
| 2014 | Jingle All the Way 2 | Claude | |
| 2016 | Countdown | Himself | [145] |
| Television | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2016–present | Aftermath | Himself | Panelist |
| 2020–present | Miss Persona | Alfredo | |
,Cagematch,Wrestlingdata,Internet Wrestling Database| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
