Konnan Doesn't Think Natalya Is A Credible Challenger For Rhea Ripley In WWE

On last week's "WWE Raw," Rhea Ripley was confronted by longtime WWE superstar Natalya. On the latest "Wrestling Observer Radio," AAA head booker Konnan used this confrontation as an example of why WWE needs to find a way to freshen up its longstanding talent.

"That's the thing, people get stale," Konnan explained. "I like Nattie, I think she's awesome but she just feels stale. She's been there so long and they don't do nothing with her." 

Konnan cites WWE's penchant for making fun of Natalya and outright accuses them of misusing the Canadian wrestling star. "She disappears, then all the sudden she just shows up like she's a credible opponent and you're like 'dude, she's stale,' and that happens a lot." Konnan believes that this issue could be easily fixed by some kind of off-season or rotation. 

"If wrestlers only worked six months out of the year then the other six months they could work other places or just rest if you have them under contract," he continued. "They'll come back fresher."

While Konnan believes that Natalya's longevity might be hurting her mystique, Natalya recently claimed the opposite. According to Natalya, she believes that her longevity is exactly what has made her so successful, noting in an Instagram post earlier this year that she's grateful for her ability to maintain her long-running career while also shepherding the future talent of WWE. Despite confronting the "SmackDown" Women's Champion, Natalya has said that she's hoping to one day win the "WWE Raw" Women's Championship, which has eluded her for her entire WWE tenure.