He then began to try out a fitness-expert gimmick using the ring name Simon Dean. The name was inspired by Dean Malenko's real name, "Dean Simon". In August 2004, a series of introductory promos about the "Simon System" (a program of diet, exercise, and supplements) were aired on WWE television. The promos parodied fitness infomercials, with Dean routinely insulting his supposed customers. During this gimmick, he acted as the sponsor of "Raw", occasionally wrestling after first insulting the fitness of the crowd and the area in which they were located. After making only a minor impact on the Raw brand, he formed a tag team with Maven who supposedly was a user of the "Simon System". With still only a minor impact made, Bucci was traded to the SmackDown! brand on June 30, 2005.