Rumored Roman Reigns vs. Oba Femi WrestleMania 43 Match Could Define WWE's Next Era

Oba Femi's quick ascent to stardom is the first time a "next era" utterance from Triple H doesn't feel like a cheap plot to get fans to view a PLE that likely ends up underwhelming. 

Tack on the name Roman Reigns and the venue WrestleMania, and it becomes all but a guarantee. 

Let the rumor mill tell it, that's where things are headed. Reigns himself acknowledged (sorry…) Femi on the post-WrestleMania show this year, clearly putting down the foundation for a feud at some point in the future. 

According to Wrestling Observer Radio's Dave Meltzer (h/t Geno Mrosko of Cageside Seats), Femi against Reigns is "too big" to do at SummerSlam, so WWE is still eyeballing next year's WrestleMania. 

Loosely translated, that means the sport's next big thing will get a proper long-term build before taking down Reigns on the biggest stage possible. 

Loosely is doing some heavy lifting, though. Fans were right if they winced at Brock Lesnar returning from his fakeout retirement for revenge on Femi, dragging out a feud that probably should have ended already. 

Not that one can complain too much about more Femi vs. Lesnar. But fans have every right to distrust that WWE can string along a solid year's worth of booking for Femi before giving him the sought-after title win. 

We are, after all, talking about a fanbase that was told the King of the Ring would challenge for a top title, only for Femi to go win it, then no thanks a title shot until a later date. Not a huge ordeal, but a shaky-ground start to what is apparently a long-term plan from a company that struggles with long-term builds that don't orbit around the Bloodline. 

Maybe the Bloodline plays a role post-SummerSlam, too. Femi working his way through the whole family one-by-one on PLE stops could be fun. Reigns is the final boss at 'Mania. That could stretch six-plus months, no problem. 

Regardless, no matter how predictable, WWE needs to route toward Femi winning it all and becoming the next top dog. This isn't LA Knight-over based around popping crowds with a throwback character. This isn't Jey Uso-over popping crowds with catchphrases kids love. 

It's a whole different beast entirely: 

WWE could indeed look genius in hindsight by slow-burning this anointing by about a year. It gives Femi more experience and by next year, fans will likely be tired of Reigns' latest run at the top. 

And frankly, who better to pass a bit of a torch right now than Reigns?

The mind nearly boggles at where the Femi era could go, too. He's a great character and promo. As soon as fans start to tire on his title run, one could easily envision a heel turn, perhaps even with a bit of a corporate slant or something, to really put over whoever actually ends up taking him down. 

The Femi era can't come at a better time, either. There's been consistent, miserable TKO meddling around Cody Rhodes and others. Guys like CM Punk are getting older. A supposed next-big-thing like Bron Breakker has flopped, at least for the time being. 

It almost feels like cheating that Femi walked through that door as a get-out-of-jail-free card. There hasn't been a star this obvious since Lesnar himself in the early 2000s. Kudos to WWE for apparently seeing it and penciling in a title feud with Reigns for the biggest show of the year more than one year ago, but the promotion still needs to tread carefully.

That said, a year is a long time. We'll see if WWE can resist the urge to pivot and say, run back Reigns-Rhodes. Or let The Rock get in the mix with Reigns, perhaps with a meddle-help from TKO. This is the same promotion, after all, that managed to mess up having Gunther retire John Cena. Say it again: The company botched retiring John Cena. 

So, it all looks and feels like a layup. Femi vs. Reigns should start a new generation that actually means something. But the path there is long and treacherous. It's a real sport, too: Look at how injuries have decimated The Vision. 

Alas, the plan is sound. If nothing else, WWE and fans are on the same page. It's on the promotion to get Femi there in a way that, about 20 years from now, we're talking about late 2020s Oba Femi the same way we talk about early 2000s Brock Lesnar.