Xia Li is set to make her amateur kickboxing debut at Combat Night Orlando on Saturday, October 24.
The NXT Superstar (real name Zhao Xia) will take on Anna Housel in a 125-pound contest in front of a socially distanced crowd of 200 people at Gilt Nightclub in Orlando, Florida.
Combat Night Orlando promoter Mitchell Chamale told the Roman Show:
“I was unaware [that Li is a wrestler] until recently, but to us, she is an athlete looking to test her skill on our event.”
“We do our best to treat all our athletes the same regardless of what they do outside the cage,” he explained.
Prior to signing with WWE in 2017, Li competed in the martial art of ‘Wushu’ throughout her life – a Chinese combat sport that utilises hard and soft fighting techniques.
After becoming the first Chinese woman to compete in a WWE ring, Li’s MMA-influenced in-ring style made her a standout performer in both Mae Young Classic tournaments and continues to be an integral part of her presentation on NXT.
A product of the WWE Performance Center, Li was most recently in action on the October 7th episode of NXT, in a losing effort to Halloween Havoc host ‘The Ballsy Badass’ Shotzi Blackheart.
Xia Li trains at The Jungle, a mixed martial arts gym run by former UFC fighter Seth Petruzelli. She can often be seen honing her craft on her Instagram account.
“I have seen a couple of her videos. She looks crisp and tough, looking forward to her testing her skills,” Chamale said.
The fight will be streamed live on pay-per-view and can be purchased here.