Reigning NXT Champion Oba Femi has made a bold statement about the current state of WWE\'s developmental brand, stating that he believes today\'s version of NXT is superior to the \"Black and Gold\" era. Femi\'s comments come after a statement made last month by NXT\'s head of creative, Shawn Michaels, who called the show the \"best two-hour show on television.\"
Speaking with Good Karma Wrestling, Oba Femi explained why he agrees with his boss\'s assessment and why he feels the current product has surpassed its predecessor.
“I mean, I agree. I agree with Shawn, in the sense that the brand is doing the best work it’s done forever. We’re on The CW Network, which is huge for us. Our partnership has been going on for the first year. We’re going into year two now so we’re expecting very big things, and I do understand that there is an era of NXT and Black and Gold which is like revered by the fans and that’s what they remember but, it’s very hard to understand that right now, we’re doing a lot better than back then. The version of NXT that is romanticized by the fans is not even doing as well as we are today. I do appreciate all the effort that the Black and Gold brand put forth. Without them, there is no NXT today, but, we have to understand that this, right now, is the best two hours of wrestling on television.”
He further elaborated on his point, arguing that the current version of NXT has successfully blended the best aspects of the Black and Gold era\'s in-ring action with the entertainment-focused style of the main roster.
“So of course, the Black and Gold era was defined by the introduction of a lot of the independent wrestlers that came with all the experience and all that. It was fast-paced action and you know, it was bang, bang, bang. The main roster has a little bit of a slower pace, where it is more entertainment-based and more about the moments and stuff like that. So, I believe that NXT today has found a way to successfully merge the two because there’s people who are like, ‘It’s too slow. I want more action’ and there’s people who is like, ‘Oh, this is too fast. We need more stars and moments.’ So NXT right now is the perfect combination of both styles, where you do have stars, big stars like Oba Femi and Trick Williams and you still have that fast-paced action by Oba Femi and Trick Williams so, this is the best version. The best possible version of NXT that we can have.”
