Dean Malenko
Sammartino re-emerged in 1996 in World Championship Wrestling (WCW), competing in the promotion's cruiserweight division. Sammartino was only used in two matches in WCW. On the December 16, 1996 episode of "WCW Monday Nitro", Sammartino challenged Dean Malenko for the WCW Cruiserweight Championship, but was defeated. The other match was a dark match, defeating preliminary wrestler, Rex King.