Why Clash in Italy Was All Pageantry and No Push for Fatu and Femi

About this episode

The episode discusses the lack of significant pushes for Jacob Fatu and Oba Femi during WWE's Clash in Italy event despite its grand presentation.

WWE’s historic debut premium live event in Turin delivered plenty of spectacular European atmosphere, but underneath the surface-level grandeur, *Clash in Italy* felt like all pageantry and no actual push for two of the company's most dominant rising forces. Instead of using the massive international stage to vault Jacob Fatu or Oba Femi to the next level, the creative decisions safely defaulted to protecting the established status quo. Jacob Fatu’s ferocious momentum was forcefully halted in the Tribal Combat main event, where a pinfall loss to Roman Reigns not only cost him his shot at the ultimate prize but strategically forced him right back into a subservient role underneath the Tribal Chief. Meanwhile, NXT’s powerhouse Oba Femi saw his unstoppable aura chipped away as a returning Brock Lesnar "evened the score"—a classic booking move prioritizing a legendary part-timer's crowd-pleasing win over truly establishing a new monster. Even on a card loaded with major moments—including "The American Nightmare" Cody Rhodes defeating "The Ring General" Gunther to retain the Undisputed WWE Championship, Rhea Ripley outlasting Jade Cargill to hold onto her WWE Women’s Championship, and…

People in this episode

Host: Wrestling Is Real Podcast

Topics covered

• WWE
• Clash in Italy
• Jacob Fatu
• Oba Femi
• wrestling booking
• premium live event

Keywords

• WWE
• Clash in Italy
• Jacob Fatu
• Oba Femi
• Roman Reigns
• Brock Lesnar
• wrestling booking
• Cody Rhodes
• Rhea Ripley

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: WWE

Places: Turin

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