In a thrilling spectacle at Battleground, Oba Femi held onto his WWE NXT North American Championship without pinning Wes Lee, leaving Lee with a future title shot that has fans buzzing. This match marked Femi’s sixth successful title defense, after WWE NXT General Manager Ava transformed the bout into a three-way dance following a controversial double pin by Joe Coffey and Wes Lee over Josh Briggs in a previous contenders’ match.
Lee, who had previously secured a shot at the North American title back in November only to be derailed by an injury until his May comeback, showed no signs of ring rust. The bout featured nail-biting near-falls and chaotic interference, especially when Coffey’s Gallus cronies, Wolfgang and Mark Coffey, stormed in to tilt the scales.
Despite the Gallus gang’s shenanigans, Femi showcased his dominance, swatting away the interference like pesky flies and refocusing on the task at hand. The action reached a fever pitch late in the match when Lee, poised for victory after delivering his signature Cardiac Kick to Coffey, saw his hopes dashed as Gallus yanked the referee out of the ring just before the three-count.
Seizing the moment, Femi executed a bone-crunching powerbomb on Lee, followed by another on Coffey, to secure the win and retain his title, leaving Wes Lee with a tantalizing claim for a future title shot.