Backstage Update On Oba Femi's WWE Main Roster Call-Up After Vacating NXT Title

Oba Femi vacated the NXT Champion as "WWE NXT" went off the air Tuesday night, following his victory over TNA X-Division Champion Leon Slater. "The Ruler" is now set for a main roster call-up, and a new report revealed what brand he may be headed to, after video vignettes for him have aired on both "WWE Raw" and "WWE SmackDown."

According to WrestleVotes Radio on Fightful Select on Thursday, Femi is currently expected to land on "Raw" and is also expected to debut near the top of the card. The report indicates that there are creative pushes for Femi to be feature prominently on WWE WrestleMania 42, with "big, high level plans" with Femi's name attached to them being discussed by creative. According to Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp, those in control of creative on the main roster didn't want Femi taking another loss, and that's why the star relinquished the title on "NXT" before going up.

Previous reports indicated that Femi impressed in his match against Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes at Saturday Night's Main Event on December 13, despite Rhodes winning the match due to Drew McIntyre interference. Femi won the opportunity to face Rhodes in the exhibition match at the event, which feature John Cena's retirement match, when he won back the NXT Championship from Ricky Saints at Deadline. "The Ruler" won the title at New Year's Evil to kick off 2025 and lost the gold to Saints at No Mercy at the end of September.

"The Ruler" took the "NXT" roster by storm, starting with his debut in April 2023. He signed with WWE back in December 2021 as part of WWE's inaugural Next in Line (NIL) class.