Themba Gorimbo of Zimbabwe punches Niko Price in a welterweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event Themba Gorimbo of Zimbabwe punches Niko Price in a welterweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday. Photo: Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Former EFC Welterweight champion and current UFC Welterweight athlete Themba Gorimbo (14-4-0) secured another victory in one of the toughest divisions in the most popular and elite MMA promotion.
Fighting on the UFC Fight Night: Royval vs Taira card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas last night, Gorimbo earned his fourth straight win via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after dominating USA’s mixed martial arts veteran Niko Price (16-8-0 NC 2) over three rounds on the prelim card which was aired on SuperSport.
This was Gorimbo’s biggest win to date and the Bati, Masvingo athlete showed vast improvement in all areas of his game, from his trademark pressure wrestling to slick striking.
FOUR IN A ROW FOR THEMBA 🙌@TheAnswerMMA takes home the UD at #UFCVegas98 pic.twitter.com/hQZ9impoSb
— UFC (@ufc) October 12, 2024
Gorimbo was the aggressor out of the gate and out-worked Price for 15 minutes.
In round one, Gorimbo proved to be a handful as he unleashed a barrage of well-timed combinations on Price with low leg kicks which impacted the American’s lead leg early on.
Gorimbo was sharp on his feet, mixing in teep kicks and combos before switching up stances, denying Price time to settle in or find any rhythm. As soon as Gorimbo found an opening, he shot for a takedown, taking Price’s back in the process enjoying top control for the rest of the round despite his opponent’s attempts to neutralize the wrestling and grappling.
In the second round, Gorimbo stayed slightly on the outside, targeting Price’s legs once again. However, the distance had him out of range when it came to his punches, not allowing him to land crisp shots. Gorimbo then adjusted and delivered two beautiful upper-cut and left-hook combinations to close the distance before securing full mount.
At times Price did well to avoid takedowns with a strong base, and at one point Price almost got his first takedown, however, Gorimbo’s strong defense would deny the American.
Gorimbo showcased his high-level cardio and picked up the pace with another set of left and right combinations before getting Price on his back.
Price did some damage control, controlling the wrists of Gorimbo, attempting a kimura in the process as the bell went.
During the second break, Price’s corner gave the man a reality check, asking him to deliver something special as they knew the Zimbabwean was leading with two rounds, but it would not be enough to rally the veteran as Gorimbo went straight for takedown at the start of the final five minutes.
With six minutes of control in the Octagon, Gorimbo stuck to his strengths enjoying top control, out wrestling Price on the UFC canvas. As Price tried to escape, Gorimbo was always one step ahead with relentless pressure, securing positions and landing strikes where openings were made available.
Gorimbo showed a keen ability to listen to his corner. One of the standout features from this fight was the man’s striking, and now, with his training at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas, it’s going to be interesting to see what kind of continued advancements the Zimbabwean makes as he continues to work with Eric Nicksick and company.
UFC Fight Night: Royval vs Taira Results
Brandon Royval (48-47, 48-47) defeats Tatsuro Taira (48-47) by split decision
JunYong Park (29-28, 29-28) defeats Brad Tavares (29-28) by split decision
Chidi Njokuani (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) defeats Jared Gooden by unanimous decision
Grant Dawson defeats Rafa Garcia by TKO (strikes) at 1:42 of Round 2
Daniel Rodriguez (29-28, 29-28) defeats Alex Morono (29-28) by split decision
Ramazan Temirov defeats C.J. Vergara by TKO (body shot) at 2:50 of Round 1
Pat Sabatini defeats Jonathan Pearce by submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:06 of Round 1
Themba Gorimbo (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) defeats Niko Price by unanimous decision
Junior Tafa defeats Sean Sharaf by TKO, Round 2, 2:15
Julia Polastri (29-28, 30-27) defeats Cory McKenna (29-28) by Split Decision
Cody Haddon (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) defeats Dan Argueta by unanimous decision
Clayton Carpenter defeats Lucas Rocha by technical submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:12 of Round 2
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