Niko Price finally had a chance to fight twice in a year at UFC Vegas 98, but it was Themba Gorimbo, who had previously shot to stardom when The Rock purchased the struggling fighter a house, who had the upper hand on Saturday.
Price would have to withstand a bit of early adversity in the opening frame, but came out unscathed. Gorimbo took the fight to the ground about a minute in, settling on top while Price closed his guard. Gorimbo still had some room to work, but Price’s ground game was not to be overlooked. Themba found some space to posture up and let loose with some ground n’ pound later in the round, but was never close to a finish.
Round two commenced with some back-and-forth on the feet, which was fairly even. But when Gorimbo found a takedown just over a minute in, the scales shifted in his favor. Gorimbo was active with the ground n’ pound, but in spite of this escaped up to his feet. Gorimbo would add a second takedown towards the end of the frame, but nearly overshot and didn’t have enough time to work regardless.
The third round was another dominant frame from Themba Gorimbo, who translated another takedown into plenty of time on top. While Niko Price would do enough off his back to prevent a finish, there was little question as to who had won the fight.
The win gives Gorimbo four straight under the UFC banner. Prior to Price, Themba Gorimbo had defeated Ramiz Brahimaj.
Official Result: Themba Gorimbo def. Niko Price by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
