Well, it’s official.
WWE NXT is currently without a world champion in the men’s division.
At the WWE NXT New Year’s Evil show at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida on Tuesday night, January 6, 2026, the show ended in explosive fashion, with Oba Femi defeating TNA X-Division Champion Leon Slater.
And then leaving his WWE NXT World Championship in the ring before walking off.
Oba Femi has been featured in vignettes promoting his arrival to the WWE main roster on Raw or SmackDown, believed to be the latter, since his impressive outing against Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes at WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event back on December 13, 2025.
In an update, WWE.com has posted the following, confirming that Oba Femi has ineed officially vacated the WWE NXT World Championship:
NXT New Year’s Evil 2026 results: Oba Femi vacates the NXT Championship after beating Leon Slater
Oba Femi retained the NXT Championship against TNA X-Division Champion Leon Slater, but he made a shocking decision following the bout.Slater refused to back down despite the massive size difference, but The Ruler didn’t relent as he tossed the challenger across the ring.
The TNA star finally found his footing thanks to supreme athleticism, but he fell to a thunderous Fall From Grace.
In a shocking twist, Femi left the NXT Championship in the ring.
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🚨 BREAKING NEWS 🚨
After his victory at #NewYearsEvil, Oba Femi has officially vacated the #WWENXT Championship. Stay tuned for more details. pic.twitter.com/NwMFVOuJjG
— WWE NXT (@WWENXT) January 7, 2026
