WWE's Natalya Talks Process Of Developing 'Nattie' Character: 'This Is Her First Year'

WWE star Natalya has taken steps this year to liven up her career. While continuing to perform in WWE and its affiliated promotions, Natalya also started going elsewhere, wrestling matches in companies like the NWA and GCW. Most recently, Natalya defeated Masha Slamovich at Josh Barnett's Bloodsport XIV. Appearing on "Busted Open Radio," Natalya discussed this latest stage of her career, revealing that she views her current persona as an entirely new character.

"Natalya is an 18-year veteran. Masha had me mistaken for Natalya, and I think that's where she f**ked up," Natalya said. "What Masha doesn't realize is that ... this is Nattie's first year. ... This is my first six months in this game as Nattie, doing this stuff outside of WWE that I've never done before."

Now that she has the newfound freedom of working both inside and outside WWE, Natalya feels she has a lot to prove. That means she's worked on her conditioning in an attempt to ensure she doesn't get winded during matches. She also doesn't want to take anything for granted, and Natalya revealed that it meant a lot to her to see WWE President Nick Khan in attendance at Bloodsport even though it took place the same day as WWE SummerSlam.

"I think Triple H and Nick, they respect the building blocks of creativity," Natalya continued. "WWE is a global juggernaut but [Paul Levesque] understands that for me to create this new character and to bring her to life, I have to build her first."

Next up for Natalya is a match at tonight's AAA Triplemanía XXXIII, in Mexico City, Mexico. There, she'll take part in a three-way match against Faby Apache and champion Lady Flammer for the AAA Reina de Reinas Championship.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.