4 Ups & 6 Downs From WWE SmackDown (Feb 25)

2. A Flat In-Ring Debut

Natalya Xia Li
WWE.com

Xia Li was drafted to SmackDown last October. She didn't properly show face on TV until the 10 December episode, but has been portrayed as an ass-kicking machine during her fleeting appearances since. This 'Great Protector' gimmick that WWE slapped on her has promise.

She might need to actually need to kick some ass though.

Li sold Natalya's basic abdominal stretch like it was Kurt Angle's ankle lock. That, in a four-minute match which was supposed to get her over, was a baffling choice. Once again, WWE's presentation was all over the shop; why not just have Xia be a killer who mauled Nattie and prepared herself for a title push post-WrestleMania?!

Earlier, it was suggested that another women's match should've followed the squash match format Sasha Banks and Shotzi did. This was the match yours truly was yakking on about. Everything about Li's first forays into SmackDown competition came out flat.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.