Lagos-Born WWE Star Oba Femi Gets CNN Feature After Beating Brock Lesnar

CNN ran a feature on May 5 on Isaac Odugbesan — the Lagos-born wrestler who competes in WWE under the name Oba Femi — and the piece captures something genuinely interesting: how a kid who grew up in Nigeria ended up becoming one of professional wrestling’s more talked-about young talents.

The Man Behind the Name

Oba Femi stands 6 feet 6 inches and carries himself accordingly. He defeated Brock Lesnar in a high-profile match, a result that turned a lot of heads in the WWE world given Lesnar’s status as one of the promotion’s biggest names of the last two decades. The CNN feature, written by Alima Williams and published May 5, frames his rise as a story deeply rooted in his Nigerian upbringing.

CNN’s Larry Madowo also spoke with him in a video segment, where Oba Femi credited his Yoruba roots and Lagos background for shaping both his mindset and his ring persona. The name itself — Oba Femi — is Yoruba, meaning “the king loves me.” It is not a stage affectation; it reflects something real about how he sees himself.

From Lagos to the WWE Main Roster

Odugbesan did not take the straightforward path to wrestling. He had a background in athletics first — track and field — before making the switch to professional wrestling. In an interview with Punch Nigeria in April, he explained that he dropped athletics for WWE because he saw a bigger opportunity and a better platform. The gamble has clearly paid off.

CNN noted that he sits down with Madowo in the video interview and talks about the work ethic he developed growing up in Lagos. It is the kind of thing Nigerian athletes often say, but in Oba Femi’s case, the results have backed it up at a level most do not reach.

Nigeria in the WWE

Nigerian representation in mainstream American sports entertainment has been rare. Oba Femi’s rise — and the fact that CNN is covering it — signals that he has crossed into a tier where his story resonates beyond wrestling fans. For Nigerians watching from Lagos, Abuja, or Port Harcourt, there is something satisfying about seeing someone carry that identity explicitly into one of the world’s biggest entertainment stages and win.

Sources: CNN, Punch Nigeria