Oba Femi has become one of WWE’s hottest stars. After a huge win at WrestleMania 42, he has been mostly featured in short Open Challenge segments on Raw. Fans love him, but the booking may be hurting his long-term rise.
Oba Femi’s recent wins
Oba Femi arrived on Raw after dominating NXT and answered Brock Lesnar’s challenge before WrestleMania 42. At WrestleMania 42, he defeated Brock Lesnar. The moment gave him big crowd reactions and a powerful start on the main roster.
Since WrestleMania, WWE has booked him in the Oba Femi Open Challenge. In those segments he has quickly beaten every opponent put in front of him. He had a squash match against Otis that drew strong reactions, and on the May 11 Raw he easily dismantled Los Garza when no one else wanted to answer the challenge.
Why the Open Challenge is a problem
The Open Challenge gives Femi clear wins, but most matches are very short. That leaves little room for storytelling. When tag teams or midcard stars answer and are quickly beaten, those challengers lose momentum. Repeat squash matches also risk the crowd getting used to the routine.
Femi’s entrance and presence are special. Fans chant his name and give him goosebumps reactions. But presence alone is not enough. He needs real, longer matches and a meaningful rivalry to prove he can carry the main event long term. If he only destroys opponents in short segments, the aura may fade before his biggest moments arrive.
Summer plans and the Roman Reigns showdown
After WrestleMania, Femi called out Roman Reigns for a future title fight. On the post-show he said he expected to be a new main event player and suggested the champion would have to face him later in the year.
“I think in the coming weeks is the establishment of a new main event player. And I think at the end of the year, the OTC [Roman Reigns] can get some!”
Roman Reigns replied by telling Femi to prove himself in the summer. Reigns said he wanted to see how Femi did before stepping up.
“Let’s see how you do in the Summer, then we’ll see if you can step to the Greatest of All Time.”
WWE seems to be building to a SummerSlam clash between Roman Reigns and Oba Femi in Minneapolis. That match is being positioned as Femi’s crowning moment. But there are months to go, and WWE should give him real work now so he earns that spot.
| Fighter | Recent Result |
|---|---|
| Oba Femi | Beat Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 42; squash win over Otis; dismantled Los Garza on May 11 Raw |
| Roman Reigns | Responded to Femi’s challenge; told him to prove himself in the summer |
Oba Femi is a major talent and a fresh face for WWE’s main event scene. WWE should move him into longer matches and a real feud soon. That will keep fans engaged and make his eventual title moment feel earned.
