In November, after she defeated Natalya, Bella became the team captain of Team SmackDown for the traditional five–on–five elimination match at Survivor Series. However, at the event, she was replaced by Natalya, after someone attacked her backstage before the match. In December, just after their feud ended, Carmella revealed Natalya as the attacker, who eventually confirmed it with the main reason being Bella's success and Natalya's downfall in the company. Upon the beginning of 2017, both women kept attacking each other inside the ring and backstage, which led to a match at the Elimination Chamber that ended in a double count–out. In a rematch that took place on the February 21 episode of "SmackDown", Natalya defeated Bella in a falls count anywhere match after Maryse attacked Bella with a lead pipe because Bella accidentally tripped over her in the backstage make up area during her match with Natalya.