Nunzio

James Maritato (born March 12, 1972) is an American professional wrestler, best known for his work in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) under the ring names Little Guido and Nunzio.

A high-school football player and amateur wrestler, he trained under Billy Robinson, making his professional debut in the early nineties.

He joined Eastern Championship Wrestling initially as an enhancement talent, as well as competing in the shoot style UWF International promotion.

Maritato later returned to ECW (now Extreme Championship Wrestling), being given the gimmick of “Little Guido” as part of the comedy stable the Full Blooded Italians (F.B.I).

While attending Nanuet Senior High School (located in Rockland County, New York), Maritato competed in football (as part of the school's 1989 team that went undefeated, untied, and unscored upon) and wrestling.

Maritato was trained as a professional wrestler by Billy Robinson.

He debuted in 1991, facing Parsippany Smith Fields in his first match.

He competed for the Amarillo, Texas-based USWF promotion under the name James Stone.

Maritato joined Eastern Championship Wrestling (ECW) under the ring name "Damien Stone" on July 14, 1992, where he lost to Tommy Cairo.

Over the next two years, he wrestled intermittently with ECW as a jobber.

He also wrestled for International World Class Championship Wrestling and other promotions in the Northeastern United States.

Maritato took some time off from ECW in 1995 and went to Japan to compete in the shoot style UWF International promotion.

Maritato returned to Eastern Championship Wrestling - by now known as Extreme Championship Wrestling - at the Big Ass Extreme Bash in March 1996.

At Massacre on Queens Boulevard in April 1996, "The Italian Stallion" J.T. Smith announced that "Damien Stone" was in fact his Sicilian cousin, "Little Guido".

Smith and Little Guido formed the comedy stable Full Blooded Italians (F.B.I.), which grew to include multiple other members.

During 1999, he became a "serious wrestler", although still accompanied by Sal E. Graziano and proclaiming himself to be an F.B.I. member (though only the two of them were left).

After his turn he was involved in some intense singles matches until late 2000, when he formed a tag team with Tony Mamaluke.

The duo won the World Tag Team Championship on August 26, 2000 and held them until December when they lost them to Danny Doring and Roadkill.

He would stay with the promotion until its closure in January 2001.

They continued to wrestle together until ECW folded in January 2001.

When ECW closed, Maritato wrestled for several independent promotions, mostly in the New York Tri-State area; he often teamed with former partner Tony Mamaluke.

After ECW closed its doors, Maritato worked on the independent circuit before he was signed to a contract by WWE in 2002.

They had a notable run in Ring of Honor before Maritato was signed by World Wrestling Entertainment in 2002.

Maritato was introduced on WWE television as "Nunzio" (a possible reference to the mob/bodyguard characters Guido and Nunzio in the MythAdventures series of books by Robert Asprin).

As the on-screen heel cousin of Jamie Noble, he attacked Crash Holly during a match with Noble on the December 12, 2002 edition of SmackDown!.

Nunzio began a feud with Holly after this, defeating him on several occasions before going on to face the likes of Tajiri, Shannon Moore, and Chuck Palumbo.

The team and cousin storyline of Nunzio and Noble soon faded.

Nunzio reformed the Full Blooded Italians, this time with Johnny "The Bull" Stamboli and Chuck Palumbo, but the team found little success.

After WrestleMania XX, Palumbo was drafted to Raw, and the F.B.I. was reduced to a tag team.

After Stamboli was released, Nunzio began competing in the cruiserweight division.

In 2005, Maritato returned to his Little Guido persona for one night; he reunited with the original Full Blooded Italians to take on Super Crazy and Tajiri in a three-way match at the ECW reunion show One Night Stand.

As Nunzio, he continued to perform on SmackDown!

B-show Velocity as both a fan favorite and a villain, forming a short-lived tag team with Funaki.

On the August 6 (taped on August 2) edition of Velocity, Nunzio won the Cruiserweight Championship by defeating Paul London after a new villainous wrestler, Vito, made his debut by giving Nunzio a blackjack, which he used to knock London out.

Nunzio joined forces with Vito, thus becoming a full-time villain.

The pair began feuding with The Mexicools and at No Mercy, Mexicool member Juventud defeated Nunzio with a Juvi Driver to take the Cruiserweight Championship.

Nunzio regained the title on November 15 at a house show in Rome, Italy but lost it right back to Juventud on the November 25 SmackDown.

Nunzio and Vito would both briefly turn into fan favorites by briefly engaging in a feud against Gregory Helms.

There he was part of the promotion’s cruiserweight division until its disbandment in 2007, as well as a new version of the F.B.I Stable.

He would take part in the ECW One Night Stand events as well as the relaunch of the franchise as a third brand before leaving WWE and returning to the independent circuit.