Santino Marella Interview: His Neck, Time in WWE, Punk/UFC, Reigns, More

Retired WWE Superstar Santino Marella recently spoke with The Pro Wrestling Experience.

Update on his injured neck:

"Not too good. Wish I could report better. when I had the initial surgery, I felt a little bit better and started training and then two of the screws came out, so we had to go in and take out all of the titanium. Little set back with regards to the fact that your body tends to overreact with that type of surgery. Your neck tightens up and it's effecting other parts of your back. It's getting there."

His experience with WWE :

"It's crazy because like now because of YouTube. People will send me links all the time and so many fun and great moments there. Wrestling has been great. The locker room has always been great since I've been there. Traveling the world, putting on shows and for me it's pure fun getting out there. I tell people that I wrestle for free, I just get paid to drag my bags around."

Performing at WrestleMania:

"It's sport entertainment yet you get this playoff feeling in your stomach. You up your training and take it seriously. There's tension. It seems like any sports entertainer is going to be not judged but significantly remembered for there WrestleMania moments. It's all about legacy. I love performing at WrestleMania. I'll be down there this year to enjoy the event as a fan and I'll be doing a couple signings at Axxess and looking at the card for this year's Mania I can't wait to enjoy the show as a fan for this WrestleMania."

How will CM Punk fare in the UFC?

"Well it's interesting. Punk is a super cardio efficient athlete. He's very meticulous with his training. He trains hard. Definitely has the skills as an athlete to be a solid fighter and he trained in jiu jitsu. Has he been studying? I knew that he did karate as a kid. How is his kickboxing/boxing? That's the only thing I'm worrying about. I'm only worrying because I don't know, he could be kickboxing at Roufusport right now as we speak (laughing). He'll have to be a high level and that's the hard part."

Word Association:

Maria: "Sexy kitty cat."

Emma: "Sexy meets goofy."

John Cena: "Hardworking."

Randy Orton: "My buddy."

Roman Reigns: "The future. I see that everybody is saying, 'Oh they're pushing and shoving down our throats.' You complain for 10 years that you wanted something new and here it is and yet you're still complaining. He's a high caliber athlete. Very nice guy. Very locker room oriented guy. The industry is going to be in good hands."

Vince McMahon: "My idol."

Triple H: "Tons of respect."