Two-time NXT Champion Oba Femi has confirmed his WWE main roster contract status following his recent promotion within the company. After closing 2025 with appearances on main roster programs, including a match against Cody Rhodes on WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event, Femi has officially vacated the NXT Championship and moved up as a ‘free agent,’ yet to be assigned to either Raw or SmackDown.
Details on Contract and Call-Up Process
Femi shared insights regarding his main roster contract during an appearance on the No-Contest Wrestling podcast. He revealed that he was aware of his upcoming promotion well before officially relinquishing the NXT title. According to him, he had already signed his guaranteed main roster contract prior to vacating the NXT Championship.
He said:
“I’ve known for a while now (about moving to the main roster). Even before I relinquished the NXT Championship, I knew, that’s one of the reasons why that move was made.
“But I was already on the guaranteed main roster – I’d already signed my contract, I just hadn’t been assigned a brand yet. My mindset in that moment is that NXT has done everything possible to prepare me for the main roster, so there was a lot of confidence.
“Plus, I had gone up there to work with the golden goose, Mr Raheem Rhodes. That’s his middle name apparently. Even I didn’t know. I got to work with Cody Rhodes, Saturday Night’s Main Event at John Cena’s retirement, so I already proved in a sense that I belonged, so there was a lot of confidence getting called up, I was ready for the moments.
The only thing that was left for me to do was ride out my time in NXT, which I did, and now I’m on the main roster, and it’s very real for a lot of people now. So we’ll see where this takes us.
– Oba Femi, WWE Superstar
Preparing for the Future on WWE’s Bigger Stages
Oba Femi’s progression reflects WWE’s confidence in his readiness to compete at a higher level after his accomplishments in NXT. His experiences working with top talent such as Cody Rhodes and participating in significant events like John Cena’s retirement have reinforced his place among WWE’s rising stars. As a free agent, Femi remains unassigned to a specific brand, which leaves room for future positioning on Raw or SmackDown as WWE determines his next steps.
This transition marks an important chapter for Femi, spotlighting WWE’s efforts to develop talent within NXT before promoting them. With his proven championship credentials and early main roster exposure, fans can anticipate that Femi’s journey will be closely watched moving forward.
