Themba Gorimbo has battled some tough injuries while making his return to the cage, but is finally in fight shape ahead of his UFC Fight Night 263 matchup against Jeremiah Wells.
“I took that Luque fight with an injury, I broke my ankle a week before I took that fight. I went against the doctors, I am hard-headed and rebellious sometimes, I think my way is their way, and I said I’m gonna make it through the fight, but I didn’t the way I should’ve.”
Despite his winning streak being broken, Gorimbo saw the injury as a chance to rest and recover.
“But it was a blessing, I wanted to be in the top 15, rush into things again. So that’s why I took my time to come back, I went back, and my ankle healed completely around May.”
“I wanted to come back end of June, International Fight Week. Then I got a fight for that, but the day before Sean offered me the fight, I broke my rib,” Gorimbo continued.
Gorimbo then got brutally honest about how he feels about fighting and his future goals.
“Who told you I like fighting? I fight because this is a sport I’m good at, I think. I made an agreement with myself when I started this sport 15 years ago that I wanted to become a champion in my previous promotion in Africa, and I did that. And I said I want to be a champion in the UFC, and I’ll do that.”
“It’s about accomplishments for me, it’s about the goals and setting goals, doing things that seem impossible, that’s why I’m here. Whether I fall or rise, the goal remains the same, and that is to be a champion.”
Gorimbo then left with one of the colder press-conference answers we’ve heard in a while,
“He’s got a family, I’ve got a family. I’ve got kids to feed at home; my kids are more important than his. If I have to kill a man, I will.
Watch the entire media day scrum with Themba Gorimbo above. He faces Jeremiah Wells at UFC Fight Night 263 on Saturday night.
