Oba Femi Wants To Change The Perception Of ‘The Big Man’

Oba Femi wants to change how people view big men in wrestling.

The Nigerian star has made a huge impact in NXT since his debut in 2022. The former shot putter is the longest-reigning NXT North American Champion of all time and has become a huge force in NXT over the past two years.

After winning the Iron Survivor Challenge and earning a shot at the NXT Championship, big things look to be in Oba Femi’s future. However, he wants to use his platform to change how big men in wrestling are viewed by the audience.

Oba Femi appeared on The Ringer Wrestling Show and spoke about his goals. The Nigerian star claimed he wants to “change the perception of the big man” and add more humanity and character to them.

His intent is to help people connect more to the character and put a human being behind the monster.

“With the big man thing, I also try to put my own spin on it because I’m trying to change the perception of the big man,” Oba Femi said. “Because every big man that comes is just ‘Rawr rawr rawr!’ and I feel like there should be a human being behind the monster. I try to just make myself feel normal in certain instances so people still have something to connect to.”

Oba Femi Says He Was Dealing With ‘Visa Things’ During NXT Absence

Oba Femi spent some time away from NXT in the last few weeks, which was down to visa issues for the Nigerian.

Speaking on The Ringer’s Wrestling Worldwide, Femi commented on his return at NXT Deadline.

“That week, honestly, from that point, two weeks before that moment was hectic for me because I was actually in Nigeria,” Femi said. “I was securing… taking care of some visa things, and I just made it in time to that show. I almost didn’t make it. There was so much going through my mind, it’s like, okay, I’ve been off for like six weeks. The last time I really wrestled a long match was versus The Family at Halloween Havoc. So at this point, I’m thinking, okay, can I still wrestle? Can I still go? How’s my wind going to be? I have all these thoughts, but then the music hits, and you’re just like, well, let’s go.”