ORLANDO, Fla. — While the returning Kaitlyn was greeted with open arms and chants of “Welcome back” by the WWE Universe, Kavita Devi gave the former Divas Champion a decidedly less warm reception, rejecting the customary pre-match handshake. Kaitlyn rewarded Devi’s uncouth behavior with rapid-fire legdrops in the opening moments, showing she hadn’t lost a step since taking a hiatus from sports-entertainment in 2014.

Devi used her strength (and a brutal chokeslam) to retaliate, but Kaitlyn refused to be stopped in her first match back. Kaitlyn blasted the NXT Superstar with a big shoulder block and a wicked forearm (earning “You’ve still got it!” chants) and unsheathed new weapons at her disposal, such as a cannonball splash in the corner. Kaitlyn then returned to an old favorite, the Spear, to nearly cut Devi in half and garner the win.

If Toni Storm is considered one of the favorites to win it all in this year’s Classic, her opponent in the opening round, fellow NXT UK Superstar Jinny, did everything in her power to play the part of a bracket-buster.

After enduring an early onslaught by Storm – which included The Lightning Down Under almost kicking a hole through Jinny – the ever-aggressive Fashionista reversed the trend of events by slamming Storm face-first into the turnbuckle. Jinny didn’t let up from there. She inflicted tremendous damage on Storm’s upper frame, including stretching the Aussie with a move that threatened to yank Storm’s arms off her body.

Despite her vicious attack, Jinny couldn’t finish the job and became visibly frustrated because of it, at one point deciding to trash talk the always-game Storm. The tide turned on a dime after Storm demolished Jinny with a snap German suplex. Storm then planted Jinny into the mat with Storm Zero for the win.

Xia Li hits like a bolt of lightning: The exact moment of impact is often too quick to see with the naked eye, but the devastation left in its wake is never in doubt, as Karen Q found out.

The two competitors displayed mutual respect before the action got underway by bowing to each other and taking a martial arts fighting stance. Proving to be very evenly matched, they each set off a flurry of kicks, all of which were deftly avoided. After the early stalemate, they bowed again, but this time Karen Q followed up by slapping Li in the face, which incensed the Chinese Superstar. Li lost her composure, playing right into Q’s hands and allowing the standout from the U.S. independent scene to take control.

Karen Q drilled Li with a handspring forearm, but later missed the mark on a frog splash. Taking advantage of the opening, Li hit a blink-and-you-miss-it flipping axe kick to down Q for the three-count. Despite her aggressive tactics during the bout, Karen Q showed grace in defeat, bowing to Li once more in a final show of respect. Li, meanwhile, goes on to the Second Round, where she will face Deonna Purrazzo.

Given Mia Yim and Allysin Kay’s long adversarial relationship (which started when Yim broke Kay’s nose six years ago), it didn’t take long for this First-Round Match to descend into an all-out war.

Though Yim scored early with a ground-and-pound attack, Kay soon took over by pouncing The Blasian Baddie out of the ring. Moments later, Kay avoided a chop that resulted Yim’s hand slamming into the steel ring post, creating a disgusting sound that reverberated throughout Full Sail Live.

Kay focused her attack on Yim’s hand from there, which created trouble for the submission specialist whenever she tried to clasp on a hold. The intensity ratcheted up after Yim checked a leg kick by Kay, with the bitter foes coming nose to nose before trading big shots, prompting a euphoric reaction from the WWE Universe.

Even as Kay continued walloping Yim with heavy hits (including scoring a two-count off her Big D discus lariat), Yim stayed in the fight. After a struggle near the ropes, Yim launched herself off the turnbuckles with a modified version of her signature move, Sole Food, to earn the victory and secure her berth in the Second Round.

Yim’s path to the Mae Young Classic Final still has a ways to go, but after this incredibly hard-hitting conflict, she can find comfort in knowing that her arch-nemesis is now in her rearview mirror.