4 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE SmackDown (12 Dec - Results & Review)

2. Oba Femi Smashes His Promo

Cody Rhodes vs. Oba Femi is a tester for things to come. If you pay close attention to WWE's way of handling business, then you know that's true. Management want to see how the NXT Champion fares in a featured spot against one of their top stars. If Oba thrives, then he'll be called up to the main roster soon. Flop, and he might need a tad more seasoning in developmental.

The dude is ready though. He really, really is.

Oba interrupted Cody’s rant at an absent Drew McIntyre (who said SmackDown was an unsafe working environment and wouldn’t be there) to remind the WWE Champ that he shouldn’t overlook him at SNME. Femi absolutely killed it on the mic here. He wasn't quite Bron Breakker addressing CM Punk on Raw, but he was slick, had a point to make, and delivered everything smoothly.

OK, so this is an exhibition match and everyone knows it, but Femi looked every bit the star here to kick off the show. In that respect, the first segment served its purpose. Fans in attendance seemed to know who Oba was too, which is always a worry when someone comes up from NXT for any reason. Sometimes, you get the impression that casual punters don't tune into NXT a whole hell of a lot.

Here's hoping Hunter was all smiles behind the curtain when Femi returned backstage. He deserved a pat on the back for going out there and matching Rhodes on the mic. That was never guaranteed, so he should be proud of himself. Now, the important thing is that he matches Cody inside the ring on Saturday.