Since coming to NXT, Oba Femi has been nothing short of impressive. In December of 2021, Femi signed with WWE through the Next In Line program. The NIL program is designed to take college athletes and turn them into professional wrestlers at the WWE Performance Center, and it’s been doing a very good job.
About a year after he first signed with the company, Femi made his debut on NXT: Level Up losing to Dante Chen. However, Femi would make his debut on NXT television at Spring Breakin’ in April of 2023, picking up a big win over Oro Mensah. He would go on a bit of a hiatus until December, but this run he’s been on now has been nothing short of special.
Is Oba Femi the next big star of the WWE?
In December of 2023, Femi announced he would be entering the prestigious 2023 Men’s NXT Breakout Tournament. Femi wasted little time too showing how talented he was. After picking up wins over Myles Borne and Tavion Heights, Femi found himself in the finals of the Men’s Breakout Tournament against Riley Osbourne.
With the finals slated for NXT: New Year’s Evil on January 2nd, 2024, the stage was set. Both Osbourne and Femi have very bright futures in the WWE, but only one man would be victorious and earn that contract for a title shot whenever they want it. Femi would defeat a very game Osbourne and go on to be that man.
Femi wasted little time making a name for himself, as the following week he would cash in his contract and take the NXT North American Championship from Dragon Lee. In doing so, Femi became the youngest North American Champion in WWE history. He also became the very first Next In Line program graduate to win a prestigious WWE title.
At Vengeance Day, Femi once again successfully retained his newly won NXT North American Championship over Dragon Lee. Femi has been turning a lot of heads in WWE recently. It’s crazy to think that he’s still so new and is already this good, and at 25 years old, he has a lot of time left to continue to climb the ladder in the WWE.
Between his wrestling talent and his brute force in the ring, Femi is firing on all cylinders. He has the look, the marketability, and most importantly the talent to be built around for years to come. In an interview, Femi stated the following:
NXT is lacking in one department severely. And that is the department of brute force. Nobody is brutal anymore. Everybody is soft. Everybody is determined. Everybody’s trying to get to the end by the soft means. But that is exactly what Oba Femi has to offer. That is exactly what I am bringing to the Men’s Breakout Tournament. Brute force.
Femi is a dangerous man, and he is going to be an absolute force for months, and maybe even years to come. Between the look, the talent, the marketability, the skill, the selling, and the ability to connect with the fans, Femi truly does have it all. It should be interesting to see where his future takes him, but one thing we know for sure is he has all the makings to be one of the next big stars in the WWE.
