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LIKE any Australian worth their salt, Billie Kay knows how to wind up the English. “Look, it’s not my fault that Australia wins at everything, it just happens that way. I’m more than happy to discuss that with some of the UK fans,” says the NXT star. Perhaps a bold approach in advance of her first-ever visit to our shores with NXT, but the young Sydney-born, ravenhaired athlete isn’t backward about coming forward. It’s a good thing too, as life in WWE isn’t for the faint hearted. Billie’s double act with school friend Peyton Royce has turned heads in NXT in recent times in a new-look women’s title picture.
Like many of her compatriots, Billie has been a keen athlete since childhood – a cornerstone of Australian culture.
She says: “Growing up, I played every single sport under the sun – basketball, netball, football, swimming, athletics, hockey, everything.”
She won a scholarship to high school in basketball, her first sporting love.
So does she feel the sporty lifestyle and the fact that women get as much encouragement as men to consider a professional career in sport in Oz, helped her become a wrestler? “I think it’s helped me a fair bit,” she admits. “Growing up in Australia, every woman is encouraged to be active, sport orientated, as athletic as they can be.
“It helped me transitioning into wrestling. I was a bit of a tough kid and it really helped me to grow a thick skin.”
A tool of the trade, we agree, typified by the woman holding the belt in NXT, Japanese sensation Asuka – as technically gifted an in-ring performer as exists in the entire company. “She is as legit as she says she is, she hits hard, she’s full on,” says Billie.
Pioneer
“Asuka is undefeated and the longest reigning NXT women’s champion for a reason. When she kicks you, you feel it. It’s not something that I enjoy. It’s something I have to endure if I want to become better and one day win that championship.”
We pay tribute to Emma, the first Australian woman to be signed by WWE, and another great friend who Billie describes as a “pioneer”.
But despite her fiery on-screen persona, Billie is fulsome in her praise for her peers in the locker room at NXT and also the Four Horsewomen, who have changed the landscape in wrestling in recent times.
“We have so many strong females here in NXT – every single one of the women are beautiful, strong women and I couldn’t be prouder of all of them,” she says.
“We have different heights, sizes, shapes, backgrounds in sport and life – it’s really cool to come into a locker room and be surrounded by some of the best athletes in the world and some of the best people.”
And the journey is set to continue with more of the same fireworks we saw in January at Takeover San Antonio when Billie and Peyton dumped Nikki Cross through a table in the title match.
“We had about three months with the Four Horsewomen before they moved up to the main roster, so we just tried to learn as much as we could from them. They are superstars – all incredible athletes.
“When they left, those were some big shoes to fill but Peyton and I are up for the challenge.
“We’re going to try to continue the legacy they left behind.
“It’s extremely demanding. Every time I step in the ring I’m working to get better and better. This is my career. I want to learn and continue to improve.”