Ricky Saints did the unthinkable at NXT No Mercy 2025. He defeated Oba Femi to capture the NXT Championship. It was a big moment in several ways, especially for Saints whose career hit a stalled point in NXT. As for Femi. The destination needs to be the main roster. No more losses on NXT as a sendoff, but straight to causing havoc on either WWE Monday Night Raw or SmackDown.
Typically, when an NXT Champion drops their title, they stick around the brand for a few extra weeks, dropping matches to “make” the rest of the roster. That’s been the case for several names like Roxanne Perez, Trick Williams, Bron Breakker, and a few others. Not everyone has done that. Take Asuka, for example. She had a historic reign that didn’t end with her taking a defeat. Instead, she relinquished the title after 510 days, never being pinned on the way out.
WWE could have gone that way with Oba Femi, and it would have been believable. However, having Saints pin Femi and pin him clean was a huge moment for a popular performer who needed the boost. But let’s talk about what is next, because it should not be that hard to make Femi into a force on the main roster.
Femi does not need to be a heater for anyone like The Miz or The New Day. He doesn’t need a mouthpiece to cut his promos. All Oba Femi needs to do is walk out to the ring and smash multiple opponents. Squash match, after squash match. Use this method for a few weeks to build momentum behind Femi until he becomes an immediate threat to take either the United States Championship or the Intercontinental Championship. Both Dominick Mysterio and Sami Zayn would be suitable sacrifices for the incoming Oba Femi push.
Sami Zayn recently introduced an open challenge to the mix. Set the stage that he does that one too many times, and Femi is the big name who appears. While it would be a fun match, the only outcome is for Femi to pick up the big win and take the title on his first night as a part of the SmackDown roster.
Fans and critics alike are watching closely to see how Oba Femi is booked. WWE has so many “can’t miss” Black male performers on the roster who should thrive as singles stars. Yet, the main roster doesn’t seem like the place where that’s going to happen. Femi is a can’t miss performer, one who should be booked much like Bron Breakker has since joining the main roster. The question is whether Triple H will do that or not, and right now, expectations aren’t high.
Oba Femi has had “next” for quite a while. Now is the time to see if WWE will truly capitalize on a performer who should be a main event star for years to come.