What’s Next For Natalya?

At Sunday’s Clash of Champions pay-per-view, the inevitable happened when Charlotte Flair defeated Natalya to retain the SmackDown Women’s Championship (and Carmella surprisingly didn’t cash in her Money in the Bank contract).

Unfortunately, the loss was par for the course for Natalya, who’s never managed to defeat Charlotte in a one-on-one championship match. And after the bell had rung and the ring was cleared, Nattie cut an emotional promo declaring that she was turning her back on the WWE Universe.

Natalya was clearly frustrated with the sub-par treatment she’s received after carrying the “entire” women’s division “for 10 years,” as she put it. And while she may have never muttered the dreaded “R” word during her tirade, afterward rumors immediately began to circulate that she was retiring.

So Is She Retiring?

For what it’s worth, Nattie did respond the above fan tweet and dismissed the retirement rumors as “NOT true on any level.” However, the tweet has since been deleted.

Early Monday morning, she posted another rather ambiguous tweet saying that “Tough times are where I’ve done most of my growing.”

But, cryptic tweets aside, it appears Nattie’s promo was all for show. On Monday, WWE.com published an article about the promo asking where Natalya will go from here. “Without a doubt, this is the most bitter side of Natalya that the WWE Universe has ever seen, and now questions are swirling about what’s next for an elite performer who has shockingly lost her composure,” the article says.

Perhaps, like Nia Jax before her, Nattie has simply asked for some time off. Or maybe WWE could be grooming her for a return to NXT. Whatever the case, fans of the Queen of Harts should rest easy.

Will Natalya retire? Share your thoughts in the comments below.