Chris King: Booking Oba Femi’s Next WWE Program

Chris King looks at Oba Femi, the WWE’s newest “Next Big Thing,” and what they should do with the Nigerian superstar following his WrestleMania victory over Brock Lesnar.

At WrestleMania 42, the young up-and-coming Nigerian superstar Oba Femi shocked the world when he defeated ‘The Beast Incarnate’ Brock Lesnar in under five minutes. Femi had an impressive performance at the grand event. The following night on Monday Night Raw, he simply said, “The Ruler has arrived,” and then dropped the mic like a badass. While this was really cool to see, I can’t help but wonder what Femi does next. 

Femi was rumored to have a lengthy feud with Lesnar, but it seems like that may not be the case anymore. Lesnar has been known to do whatever he wants and show up whenever he wants, so perhaps he could get some revenge on Femi. In the meantime, The Ruler needs to have somebody to feud with over the next couple of months. Three superstars come to mind: one is Rusev, a returning Sheamus, and Drew McIntyre. ‘The Bulgarian Brute’ is currently involved in the Intercontinental Championship mix, while Sheamus is out recovering from shoulder surgery back in November. McIntyre is currently filming a show, but this would be a really interesting program. 

‘The Scottish Warrior’ just suffered a huge loss at Mania to Jacob Fatu and would be looking for some redemption. Femi needs to be placed into a feud with a seasoned veteran, and McIntyre would be the perfect opponent for him. Both superstars were built up through the NXT system, and Femi could learn the difference between being on the developmental brand and the main roster. Femi could battle against one of the strongest and most calculated superstars. 

Femi called out the brand new world champion Roman Reigns at the WrestleMania post-show, saying that he will see him by the end of the year. Reigns bounced back and said Femi was still fresh in this business and he needs to prove himself throughout the summer before coming at the champ. To be honest, Reigns is correct. Femi needs a feud with a big name to continue his growth and rise in WWE. 

I could easily see WWE entering Femi into the King of the Ring Tournament and winning, similar to how Lesnar won back in 2002. The problem is that the KOTR event doesn’t take place until June. Keeping Femi off TV all that time might hurt his popularity and his career in the long run. All I’m saying is Femi was built up to be a freaking star, and I don’t think WWE wants to do anything to derail his momentum.