What if Natalya Neidhart turns heel?

After spending years as a heel, and even reigning over SmackDown as an evil women’s champion for a period of months, Natalya showed up on Monday Night Raw as a newly christened face. She was promptly paired with Ronda Rousey as her sidekick and occasional tag team partner.

The general perception is that, from a backstage perspective, she’s Rousey’s personal coach as the megastar learns to navigate the waters of pro wrestling. Meanwhile, on screen, she’s often a victim for Rousey to come to the rescue of, or to build heat for a Rousey match when enemies use Natalya to get into the head of The Baddest Woman on the Planet.

But what if Natalya turns heel?

Fans have predicted it happening, and an inevitable feud between one of the most skilled veterans from the women’s locker room and that roster’s biggest star would truly be awesome. This article takes a look at not only that, but other implications of Natalya turning heel.

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5. Natalya vs. Ronda Rousey

Natalya's first major opponent as a heel would have to be Ronda Rousey.

If or when WWE pulls the trigger on a heel turn for Natalya, the obvious first stop would be a feud with Ronda Rousey. While Natalya has not necessarily been built up as a credible threat to Rousey as of late—particularly in functioning as a gatekeeper for talents like Alexa Bliss to beat on their way to matches with Rousey—she has an ace up her sleeve. In having been booked as Rousey’s best friend, there’s a more personal story to be told here, and a natural angle about Natalya having a psychological edge after hurting Rousey’s feelings with a betrayal.

The best news for this program is that Natalya is both a highly skilled, veteran technician and actually has the physicality to be relatively believable against a wrestler of Rousey’s size. There’s no reason to think Natalya would win, but the feud and blow off match have plenty of potential.

4. The main event for Evolution gets booked

Ronda Rousey is likely to headline Evolution anyway, but a personal feud and a match for the title would shore up her placement.

The Evolution PPV is around the corner with very few matches officially announced at this point. We can bet that WWE will make every effort to make this show a good and memorable one, if only because of the amount of attention the unique, all-female set up for the show is. So, which match gets the main event spot?

It could be an inter-generational dream match like Trish Stratus vs. Alexa Bliss; the Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair angle has heated up enough and has a championship at stake.

At the end of the day, though, Ronda Rousey is the biggest name the women’s division has. To maximize star power at the top of the show, and to ensure a good match, WWE won’t do much better than Rousey vs. Natalya. Add in the kicker of a personal issue between the two and it’s all but a lock to headline the first ever all women’s PPV.

3. Putting over Ember Moon

Natalya could move on from the Rousey feud to Ember Moon.

After Natalya feuds with Ronda Rousey, she will probably move back down the card to engage with other relatively fresh feuds against younger faces on the Raw brand. One of the best matchups for Natalya at that stage will be Ember Moon.

Ember Moon impressed NXT fans over the course of her tenure in developmental as she matured from a a tremendous athletic talent who was still green in the ring to a rock solid performer. She hasn’t had much opportunity to succeed since moving up to Raw, though, not getting booked into any programs of significance, and not even used on TV consistently.

A program with Natalya would lend Moon a credible opponent to have a meaningful program with, besides getting the opportunity to share the ring with one of the most experienced performers WWE has, and continue to grow based on that opportunity.

2. Natalya edges toward retirement

Natalya could transition from this last heel run into retirement.

At thirty six years old, Natalya could still have some years left in her tank as a WWE Superstar, particularly in this era when the company seems legitimately more invested in quality of performance than just offering up eye candy from the women’s division. However, there’s also a certain shelf life on acts in WWE before they start to feel stale. Additionally, Natalya’s husband, Tyson Kidd, suffered a career ending injury in 2015.

So, while Natalya could carry on indefinitely, it wouldn’t be a complete shocker if she were to retire. Wrapping things up with a final stretch as a heel, working the biggest match of her life with Ronda Rousey and a farewell tour opposite up and comers she can help along would be a fitting close to an impressive career. Better yet, with the women featured more prominently, and the women’s Royal Rumble and Evolution PPV expected to become annual happenings, there’s never been a better time to be a part-time legend for the women’s roster.

1. The Horsewomen are coming

Ronda Rousey may call upon some different friends if Natalya turns on her.

Ronda Rousey’s association with Natalya has given her an on screen ally and built in friend and mentor in the locker room. As she settles into herself as a professional wrestler, the latter need is diminishing by the day. And as for an ally? Who better to back The Baddest Woman on the Planet than three of her real life best friends, each of whom happen to be under developmental deals right now.

With Natalya out of the mix, Rousey could focus on a partnership with the self proclaimed Four Horsewomen of MMA, Shayna Baszler, Marina Shafir, and Jessamyn Duke. While Shafir and Duke are still green in the sports entertainment world, the foursome, and Baszler growing quite polished over her time in NXT, could nicely cover for their limitations in the early going. If Natalya turns soon, we might even see the Horsewomen of MMA come together on Raw in time for their once rumored clash with the Four Horsewomen of NXT at Survivor Series.