Natalya Talks About If She Would Have Been Able to Turn Heel on Ronda Rousey in 2018 Following Her Father’s Passing

During an appearance on Busted Open Radio (h/t Fightful), Natalya talked about what would have happened with the RAW Women’s Title scene going into WrestleMania season had she turned heel on Ronda Rousey at or shortly after Summmerslam last year when Rousey won her first RAW Women’s Title, setting up a Natalya vs. Rousey match at WWE Evolution, and if she would have been able to play a heel so shortly after the death of her father, Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart.

“For me, when I look back, especially internally working in the company and my husband’s a producer and T.J. was also a superstar/wrestler for twenty years. Looking at the ins-and-outs of especially what happened with that main event, it was all a series of circumstances. I don’t know if that was ever supposed to be… obviously I don’t think that was ever supposed to be the original game plan. I think that when I look at it, it’s like, Becky was supposed to have that match with Ronda at Survivor Series. Nia knocked Becky out, Becky got a concussion and she couldn’t compete, and all of a sudden, it turned into Charlotte versus Ronda on four days notice, and then Becky’s momentum really, really started to pick up and I really wasn’t involved in that other than the fact that I was just coming back from… at that point in November, I think it was just a few months after my dad passed away, so for me it was a very strange place to be because I think… and this is just me speaking from the heart, off the cuff, I would’ve loved to turn heel on Ronda and done a program with Ronda.” Natalya shared. “At that point… if my dad hadn’t passed away, and I didn’t have that situation around me, I probably would’ve turned heel shortly after SummerSlam and who knows? I maybe would’ve been involved in that situation. But I think for me to be inserted into that angle, like I said, all the stuff with the main event was just a series of circumstances and I don’t know, especially after going through that extreme emotional trauma of losing my dad, who knows if I would’ve been strong enough to immediately just turn heel on Ronda and if I turned heel on Ronda, maybe I would’ve somehow, somewhere been a part of this main event. But it turned out, with everything with Becky and the concussion that was never supposed to happen and all of sudden, this crazy feud.”