Natalya is throwing her weight behind a growing industry sentiment, declaring that Chad Gable is the best professional wrestler in the world and echoing a recent claim from JBL that nobody else is even close.
Speaking on the Busted Open Podcast with host Dave LaGreca, Natalya called the mask versus mask match between El Grande Americano (Ludwig Kaiser) and the Original El Grande Americano (Chad Gable) in AAA the match of the year, saying it had the entire wrestling world talking and delivered on every level: the stakes, the emotion, and the atmosphere of a loud, sold-out Mexican crowd.
“I heard JBL say this past week, he said Chad Gable is the best professional wrestler in the world, and nobody else is even close,” Natalya said, adding that she does not think anyone can argue it.
Why The Mask Match Carried Such Weight
Natalya stressed that in Mexico, a mask versus mask match is treated as deeply serious, comparing the gravity of an unmasking to the idea of Rey Mysterio losing his mask. That cultural weight, she argued, is part of what made the bout resonate so widely.
She also pushed back on early skepticism about the El Grande Americano character, which some had dismissed as goofy when Gable returned to it.
“Chad Gable proved that he could take anything that he was given and turn it into magic,” Natalya said. “He made everybody believe in the story, and he committed himself to it so much that he made everybody feel that the stakes were high.”
Ludwig Kaiser And AAA Reap The Rewards
Natalya credited Gable with elevating his opponent, saying the story transformed Kaiser into the biggest star in Mexico.
“Because of that story, Kaiser is the biggest star in Mexico. He’s a hero in Mexico,” she said. She pointed to the contrast with his former Ludwig Kaiser run in WWE as evidence of his talent, and called AAA one of the hottest promotions in the world right now.
She framed Gable’s rise as a study in grit, built by pushing through injuries, setbacks and doubt.
Natalya, who turned heel on WWE Raw with an attack on Maxxine Dupri, has been outspoken about the state of the business of late, including her thoughts on legacy and complacency in wrestling.