Xia Li

Zhao Xia[2] (simplified Chinese: 赵夏; traditional Chinese: 趙夏; pinyin: Zhào Xià; Chongqing, July 28, 1988) is a Chinese professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Xia Li (simplified Chinese: 里夏; traditional Chinese: 裡夏; pinyin: Lǐ Xià). She is currently signed to WWE where she is performing on their NXT brand.[3][4] She is the first Chinese woman to ever compete in a WWE ring.

Xia Li
Li in November 2019
Birth nameZhao Xia
BornChongqing, China[1]
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Xia Li
Billed height5 ft 3 in (1.60 m)[1]
Billed fromChongqing, China
Trained byWWE Performance Center
DebutJuly 13, 2017

Professional wrestling career

Before joining WWE, Li was a lifelong combat-sport athlete, fighting in the martial art of wushu.[5]

WWE

In January 2017, she joined the WWE Performance Center after she had impressed talent scouts at a tryout in Shanghai, China.[6] On July 13, Li made her debut for WWE competing in the inaugural Mae Young Classic, making her the first Chinese woman to ever compete in a WWE ring.[5] She was eliminated in the first round by Mercedes Martinez.[7] On September 19, 2018, Li competed in her second Mae Young Classic, defeating Karen Q in the first round,[8] but was eliminated in the second round by Deonna Purrazzo.[9] Throughout 2017 and 2018, Li only wrestled at NXT live events outside of the Mae Young Classic.[10] On January 27, 2019, at the Royal Rumble, she made her first appearance on a main roster pay-per-view by entering the women's Royal Rumble match at number 11, lasting 4:48 before being eliminated by Charlotte Flair.[11][12] She would compete in the women's Royal Rumble match again at the namesake event on January 26, 2020, entering at number 24 and lasting 10:49, before being eliminated by Shayna Baszler.[13][14]

NXT (2019−present)

Li made her television debut on the February 20, 2019 episode of NXT, losing in a singles match to Mia Yim.[10][15] On the May 1 episode of NXT, she picked up her first televised win by defeating Rachel Evers.[10] In mid-November, she got into a feud with Aliyah and Vanessa Borne, getting back-to-back singles victories over the duo on the November 13 and 27 episodes of NXT, the latter of which saw her get attacked by NXT Women's Champion Shayna Baszler, Marina Shafir and Jessamyn Duke afterwards.[16][17] It lead to a non-title match on the following week of NXT, with Li losing to Baszler by submission.[18] On the March 25, 2020 episode of NXT, Li was set to face Aliyah in a qualifier to compete in a Ladder match to determine the #1 contender for the NXT Women's Championship, but was injured by her backstage before the match started.[19] This led to a brief match between the two on the April 15 episode of NXT, with Li getting revenge by defeating Aliyah.[20] On the May 6 episode of NXT, Li had a match with Chelsea Green, which she lost due to a distraction from Aliyah.[21] This lead to another match between the two on the June 17 episode of NXT, with Aliyah getting the victory after Robert Stone distracted Li by vomiting in the ring.[22]

References
  1. "Xia Li". WWE. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  2. "Chongqing wrestler strikes spicy tone as she makes WWE history". Chinadaily.com.cn. October 3, 2018. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  3. "Csonka's NXT Review 2.27.19". 411Mania. February 27, 2019. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  4. "NXT Daytona Beach, FL Live Event Results (2/23/19): Velveteen Dream Defends NXT North American Title | Fightful Wrestling". Fightful.com. February 24, 2019. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  5. "Xia Li". WWE. August 22, 2018. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  6. "Recruits from China begin WWE training". WWE. January 5, 2017. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  7. Powell, John (August 28, 2017). "Powell's WWE Mae Young Classic Review: Episode Two featuring Sarah Logan vs. Mia Yim, Mercedes Martinez vs. Xia Li, Miranda Salinas vs. Rhea Ripley, and Marti Bell vs. Rachel Evers". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  8. Powell, John (September 20, 2018). "Powell's WWE Mae Young Classic 2018 Ep. 3 Review: Kaitlyn vs. Kavita Devi, Toni Storm vs. Jinny, Karen Q vs. Xia Li, and Mia Yim vs. Allysin Kay in first round matches". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  9. Powell, John (October 11, 2018). "Powell's WWE Mae Young Classic 2018 Ep. 6 Review: Kaitlyn vs. Mia Yim, Io Shirai vs. Zeuxis, Deonna Purrazzo vs. Xia Li, and Tegan Nox vs. Nicole Matthews in the final second round matches". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  10. "Matches « Xia Li « Wrestlers Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". Cagematch.net. Retrieved March 23, 2019.
  11. Johnson, Mike (January 27, 2019). "COMPLETE WWE ROYAL RUMBLE 2019 COVERAGE". PWInsider. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  12. Benigno, Anthony. "Becky Lynch won the 30-Woman Royal Rumble Match". WWE. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  13. Powell, John (January 26, 2020). "WWE Royal Rumble results: Powell's live review of the Royal Rumble matches, "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt vs. Daniel Bryan in a strap match for the WWE Universal Championship, Becky Lynch vs. Asuka for the Raw Women's Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  14. Garretson, Jordan (January 26, 2020). "Charlotte Flair won the 30-Woman Royal Rumble Match". WWE. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  15. Moore, John (February 20, 2019). "Moore's NXT TV Live Review: NXT announcement, Johnny Gargano vs. Velveteen Dream for the NXT North American Championship, Aleister Black vs. Roderick Strong, Xia Li vs. Mia Yim, Matt Riddle interview". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved March 23, 2019.
  16. Berge, Kevin (November 13, 2019). "WWE NXT Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from November 13". Bleacher Report. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  17. Moore, John (November 27, 2019). "11/27 NXT TV results: Moore's live review of Roderick Strong and Kyle O'Reilly vs. Keith Lee and Dominik Dijakovic for the NXT Tag Titles, Lio Rush vs. Akira Tozawa for the NXT Cruiserweight Championship, Survivor Series and WarGames fallout". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  18. Moore, John (December 4, 2019). "12/4 NXT TV results: Moore's live review of Rhea Ripley vs. Dakota Kai, Kushida's return to the ring". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  19. Berge, Kevin (March 25, 2020). "WWE NXT Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from March 25". Bleacher Report. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  20. Berge, Kevin (April 15, 2020). "WWE NXT Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from April 15". Bleacher Report. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  21. Berge, Kevin (May 6, 2020). "WWE NXT Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction and Highlights from May 6". Bleacher Report. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  22. Pantoja, Kevin (June 17, 2020). "Kevin's WWE NXT Review 6.17.20". 411Mania. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
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