Jim Ross Says Oba Femi Is His Slight Favorite to Be WWE Champion at WrestleMania 43 Over Bron Breakker

Jim Ross has endorsed Oba Femi as the most likely candidate to be WWE World Champion at WrestleMania 43 — placing him ahead of Bron Breakker and Logan Paul in the pecking order of the company’s next generation of main event stars. Speaking on the Grilling JR Podcast, Ross laid out a detailed case for why Femi’s WrestleMania 42 victory over Brock Lesnar has fundamentally repositioned him above his contemporaries.

“He’s got a better shot at it than anybody you and I can probably name right now, because he beat the monster. And he’s unique. His look is unique. He’s very impressive in that regard. Oba Femi being the champion at next year’s WrestleMania is going to be dependent upon how fast the company can build total confidence in his ability. He’s got to stay reliable. He’s got to work on his game. He ain’t ready. But you’ve got to run with a guy if you’re making that kind of commitment. And the first commitment they’ve made with him is him beating Brock Lesnar. It’s very possible. I can’t name you anyone currently on the roster that has an extremely better chance of being the champion at WrestleMania next year than Oba right now. He’d be my slight favorite in the horse race,” Ross said.

Jim Ross Says Logan Paul Is the Best Worker of the Group but Bron Breakker’s Wrestling DNA Makes Him a Powerful Contender

Ross offered nuanced assessments of the other two performers in the conversation. “The best worker of the group is the Paul kid. He’s the best talent bell to bell. Putting a match together. He’s still going to be perceived as somewhat one dimensional, because the son of a b*tch looks like a Greek god and people draw their assumptions on his physique rather than his fundamental soundness. Breakker is a — I love his game because he’s a legitimate tough athlete that has the pro wrestling DNA flowing through his veins. If I had to make a pick, Oba is going to be one, and maybe Breakker will be one A. But you damn sure don’t want to pass over on Steiner’s kid.” WrestleMania 43 is scheduled to take place in Saudi Arabia in 2027, marking the first WrestleMania ever held outside of North America.