5 Things you didn't know about Santino Marella 

#1. Marella didn't really know how to speak Italian

Santino Marella

Legendary WWE Hall of Famer Dusty Rhodes told Santino Marella that if WWE asks you to do something and you don't necessarily know how to do it, just fake it until you make it. That's exactly what Marella did when asked if he knew how to speak Italian.

Santino was interested in learning the language before WWE ever came calling and would listen to audiotapes on long car journeys,

"I didn't really know how to speak Italian, but I could say things on the tape. When they called, they said, 'You're Italian right? Can you say something in Italian?'"

Marella did his best and responded with, "Voglio comprare mezzo chilo di formaggio." The phrase literally means, "I want to buy a half kilo of cheese."

Marella told Lilian Garcia,

"I could hear them looking around at each other going, 'I don't know. It sounded pretty good.'"

The phrase sold the powers that be in WWE, who flew Santino Marella to Milan, Italy. Two days later he would defeat Umaga for the Intercontinental Championship and the rest is history.

Readers may listen to Lilian Garcia's full interview with Santino Marella below: