Oba Femi | |
---|---|
Birth name | Isaac Odugbesan |
Born | [1] Lagos, Nigeria [1] | April 22, 1998
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) | Isaac Odugbesan Oba Femi [2] |
Billed height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) [2] |
Billed weight | 270 lb (122 kg) [2] |
Billed from | Lagos, Nigeria |
Trained by | WWE Performance Center [1] |
Debut | November 15, 2022 [1] |
Isaac Odugbesan (born April 22, 1998) is a Nigerian professional wrestler and former shot putter. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Oba Femi and is the current NXT North American Champion in his first reign.
Odugbesan had won several medals during his high school years. This would earn him a student-athlete scholarship at Middle Tennessee State University, winning the Conference USA title. Odugbesan then transferred to the University of Alabama in Summer 2019, where he won the shot put title at the SEC Indoor Track and Field Championships in 2021 and 2022, as well as winning the outdoor title in the latter year prior to graduation. [3] [4]
On December 8, 2021, Odugbesan signed with professional wrestling promotion WWE as part of its new Next In Line program to develop college athletes into potential WWE wrestlers. [5] Under the ring name Oba Femi, he made his in-ring debut on the November 18, 2022, episode of NXT Level Up , losing to Dante Chen. [6]
After going winless on the program through February, Femi made his formal NXT debut on April 25, 2023, at Spring Breakin', defeating Oro Mensah. [7] After a hiatus on television, on December 2023, Femi entered the 2023 Men's NXT Breakout Tournament. He defeated Myles Borne in the first round and Tavion Heights in the semifinals. [8] On January 2, 2024, at NXT: New Year's Evil, Femi defeated Riley Osborne in the finals to become the winner of the tournament. [9] The following week, Femi cashed in his Breakout Tournament contract and defeated Dragon Lee to win the NXT North American Championship. This is his first title win of his career while also becoming the first Next In Line program graduate to win a championship in WWE. [10] [11] On February 4 at NXT: Vengeance Day, Femi successfully defended his title in his first title defense against Lee. [12] In Femi's first NXT Stand & Deliver event on April 6, he successfully defended his title against Dijak and Josh Briggs in a triple threat match. [13]
Christopher James Dijak is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the mononymous ring name Dijak.
Aoife Cusack is an Irish professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Lyra Valkyria. She is a former one-time NXT Women's Champion.
Joshua Bruns is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Josh Briggs. He is currently signed to WWE where he performs on the NXT brand. In WWE, he is a one-time NXT UK Tag Team Champion with Brooks Jensen, and he and Jensen are recognized as the final holders of the championship. He previously appeared for Evolve, where he was the final Evolve Champion.
Christian Brigham is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Carmelo Hayes. He is a former one-time NXT Champion, a two-time and longest combined reigning NXT North American Champion, and a one-time and the final NXT Cruiserweight Champion, having unified it with the NXT North American Championship.
Carla Gonzalez is an American professional wrestler. As of March 2022, she is signed to WWE where she performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Roxanne Perez. She is the current NXT Women's Champion in her record-tying second reign, and a former NXT Women's Tag Team Champion with Cora Jade. Prior to signing with WWE, Gonzalez wrestled under the ring name Rok-C in Ring of Honor (ROH), where she was the inaugural ROH Women's World Champion. She also worked for several independent promotions such as Reality of Wrestling.
Faith Marie Jefferies is an American professional wrestler, taekwondo practitioner, and musician. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on its NXT brand under the ring name Nikkita Lyons. Jefferies has also wrestled for Women of Wrestling (WOW) as Faith the Lioness.
Oliver Sauter is a Swiss professional wrestler signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Oro Mensah as a member of The Meta-Four.
Benjamin Timms is a British professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Nathan Frazer, where he is one-half of the NXT Tag Team Champions with Axiom in their first reign. He is a former one-time NXT Heritage Cup Champion.
Chase University is a heroic professional wrestling stable consisting of Andre Chase, Duke Hudson, Thea Hail and Riley Osborne. They are all currently signed to WWE, where they perform on the NXT brand. Chase and Hudson are former one-time NXT Tag Team Champions. The stable's gimmick contain elements of an educational university, with Chase serving as the dean and the rest acting as the students.
Kayla Klingensmith is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Kiana James. She is a former one-time NXT Women's Tag Team Champion.
Jessica Woynilko is an American professional wrestler and former gymnast. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Tiffany Stratton. She is a former one-time NXT Women's Champion.
The 2023 NXT Battleground was the sixth Battleground professional wrestling livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT brand division. The event took place on May 28, 2023, at the Tsongas Center in Lowell, Massachusetts. It was the first Battleground held since 2017, as well as the first to livestream on Peacock.
The 2023 Spring Breakin' was the second annual Spring Breakin' professional wrestling event produced by WWE. It was held primarily for wrestlers from the NXT brand division. Spring Breakin' aired as a special episode of NXT. The television special took place on April 25, 2023, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida and aired on the USA Network.
Matrick Mondre Belton is an American professional wrestler and former football player. As a wrestler, he is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Trick Williams and is the current NXT Champion in his first reign. He is a former one-time NXT North American Champion and the winner of the 2023 Men's Iron Survivor Challenge.
The 2024 NXT Stand & Deliver was a professional wrestling event produced by WWE for its developmental brand NXT. It was the fourth annual NXT Stand & Deliver event and took place on Saturday, April 6, 2024, at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The event aired via WWE's livestreaming platforms and was held as a part of WrestleMania Weekend, taking place the same day as Night 1 of WrestleMania XL with a special start time of 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Meta-Four served as the hosts of the event.
The 2024 NXT Vengeance Day was a professional wrestling event produced by WWE. It was the fourth annual Vengeance Day event held for the promotion's developmental brand NXT, and the 12th Vengeance overall. The event aired via WWE's livestreaming platforms and took place on February 4, 2024, at the F&M Bank Arena in Clarksville, Tennessee, marking NXT's first livestreaming event to be held in Tennessee.
The 2024 NXT Battleground: Las Vegas, is an upcoming professional wrestling event produced by WWE. It will be the second annual Battleground held for the promotion's developmental brand NXT, and the seventh Battleground overall. In partnership with Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), WWE's sister company under TKO Group Holdings, the event will take place on June 9, 2024, at the UFC Apex in the Las Vegas community of Enterprise, Nevada. It will be WWE's first event held at the venue and will air via the company's livestreaming platforms.
The 2024 NXT Roadblock was the third annual NXT Roadblock professional wrestling television special produced by WWE, and fifth Roadblock event overall. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's NXT brand division. The event took place on March 5, 2024, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida and aired live as a special episode of NXT on the USA Network. The event's title was a reference to its position on the road to NXT Stand & Deliver, NXT's WrestleMania Weekend event.
The 2024 Spring Breakin' was a professional wrestling television special produced by WWE for its developmental brand NXT. It was the third annual Spring Breakin' for the brand and aired as a two-part special episode of NXT on the USA Network. The event took place on April 23 and April 30, 2024, at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida.