Throughout 1981, Sammartino picked up where his father left off the year before, feuding with Bruno's former protégé, Larry Zbyszko, on the independent circuit.

[2] This led to a series of tag team matches that brought Bruno out of retirement in an effort to get David's career advanced.

[2] In one of his final WWF appearances, Sammartino was involved in a controversial finish at the Philadelphia Spectrum on November 22, 1985, quickly submitting to a bear hug by jobber Ron Shaw.

[2] Sammartino's second run ended in 1988 when he was fired from the WWF after he was arrested for punching a fan, who spat at him in Watertown, New York.

In 2010, Sammartino appeared at an International Wrestling Cartel event called "IWC Night of legends" defeating former rival Larry Zbyszko.

[8] In June 2010, Sammartino teamed with Zbyzsko, against Frank Stalletto, and Lou Marconi at Deaf Wrestlefest 2010 in a winning effort.