Preview: UFC Fight Night 244 Prelims

Welterweights

Themba Gorimbo (13-4, 3-1 UFC) vs. Niko Price (16-7, 8-7 UFC)

ODDS: Gorimbo (-278), Price (+225)

Gorimbo’s UFC career thus far has been an impressive bit of overachievement. The second Zimbabwe-born fighter in UFC history, Gorimbo was a somewhat baffling signing when the UFC picked him up early last year. He had some solid ideas in terms of pace and aggression but didn’t have the athleticism or technical skills to even consistently succeed at the regional level. Eventually getting outwrestled and tapped out by A.J. Fletcher in his UFC debut did little to dissuade those thoughts, but Gorimbo has turned things around to a shocking degree, as he now rides a three-fight winning streak. Gorimbo’s still messy with his aggression, but he has a little bit of extra athletic pop that has helped him past less comfortable opponents. He quickly knocked out Pete Rodriguez, while both Takashi Sato and Ramiz Brahimaj had trouble keeping up with Gorimbo’s relentless pace. Price provides both a big step up and a winnable next matchup for Gorimbo, since he’s always dangerous but has quietly been in the middle of a late-career skid. Price is also a fighter who has historically been a bit of a mess, but “The Hybrid” has typically been able to paper that over with a ridiculous amount of natural power. He has made a career of pulling knockouts from seemingly out of nowhere, with the clearest example being a 2018 finish of Randy Brown via hammerfists while lying on his back. However, Price has slowed down in recent years, which has made it harder for him to catch his opponents, and his record has suffered as a result. Since a 2019 win over James Vick, Price has won only two fights in a shade under five years. That has mostly gone under-the-radar, in part due to some injury layoffs that have kept Price out of action and those two wins being fairly evenly spaced out. While Price is now coming off a June win over Alex Morono, that fight said more about a particularly flat performance from his opponent than anything else. Price is by far the most dangerous opponent Gorimbo has faced to date, so there’s a chance that the Florida native scores an easy knockout. With that said, the call is that Gorimbo’s confidence and aggression can see him through to an ugly win, particularly if he finds a few takedowns. The pick is Gorimbo via decision.

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