Li Xia. (Photo/chinadaily.com.cn)
World Wrestling Entertainment returned to China for the fourth straight year on Saturday, bringing its unique blend of athleticism and theatrics to Shanghai's Mercedes-Benz Arena.
The show kicked off with a match between 7-foot American Kevin Owens and Mexico's Manny Andrade that drew a flurry of laughter, cheers and jeers.
Among those who received the biggest cheers was Li Xia from Chongqing, Sichuan province, who won the crowd over with her kicks and spitfire personality. Much to the audience's delight, Li, the first Chinese female to break into the WWE, won her match.
Other highlights included the match between Roman Reigns of the US and Canada's feisty Sami Zayn, who riled the crowd with his taunts.
Ahead of the show, two members of WWE's six-time tag team champions The New Day talked to media about their thoughts of returning to Shanghai.
American Ettore Ewen - aka Big E - spoke about the reception for WWE and reiterated the company's goals of expanding its presence in China.
"I think the Chinese market is very important to our company and I believe we are going to continue to grow here. It's such a massive country and to see how excited the fans are about WWE is pretty incredible," said Ewen.
"Obviously we want to tap into more of that, increase our fanbase and find more Chinese talent."
Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah, aka Kofi Kingston and the other half of The New Day, added: "We always look forward to coming to China, and it's a very big deal that we're here again.
"China is a place where we always look forward to performing because the energy levels are just off the charts. As performers we feed off that. When we see everyone having a good time, we just want to give more of ourselves to the crowd."
Sarkodie-Mensah also reserved words of praise for China's budding WWE wrestlers, saying that he has found them to be "very talented and athletic".
"I think they have all the potential in the world. It's just a matter of hard work and a little bit of luck. I think they have what it takes to succeed in WWE," he said.
Sarkodie-Mensah also had words of encouragement and advice for aspiring professional wrestlers, discussing how he aspired from an early age to become one after watching legends such as Shawn Michaels and Rey Mysterio.
"The funny thing about life is that when we are kids, we're told that we can be whatever we want to be, but when we become adults and want to do something that's outside of the norm, everyone tells you that you're not supposed to do it," he said.
"I wasn't fulfilled with my job after graduating from college and I eventually decided to follow my dream and become a WWE superstar. I'm so glad that I did.
"Fast-forward 12 years and here I am, a WWE champion. I'm living out my childhood dream. To anybody out there who has a dream, I urge you to follow it because it's the greatest thing in the world."
