Themba Gorimbo of Zimbabwe faces Takashi Sato of Japan in a welterweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on May 20, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada Zimbabwe’s Themba Gorimbo admitted he was battling a serious bout of flu during UFC fight against Japan Takashi Sato on Saturday. Seen here: Themba Gorimbo of Zimbabwe (right) faces Takashi Sato of Japan. Picture: Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Johannesburg - Zimbabwe’s Themba “The Answer” Gorimbo admitted to facing two opponents in his second Ultimate Fighting Championship bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday.
The former EFC Welterweight champion and South African-based star posted a video on social media stating that he had been battling a bout of flu just moments before his fight with Japan’s Takashi Sato.
Gorimbo defeated Sato via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) in the opening fight of the UFC Fight Night: Dern vs Hill card.
Gorimbo’s dominant display all-round was the turnaround he needed following a guillotine choke loss to USA’s AJ Fletcher in his UFC debut earlier this year.
“Hey guys, quick confession so that if you don’t know, now you will know. I woke up at 3am this morning (Saturday morning) with a terrible flu.
“I had an insanely painful headache throbbing on the front and top of my face. My nose, it’s completely blocked. I can’t even breathe properly. I was so sad and worried and even thought of calling my manager to explain the situation, but I had to fortify my mind. I ordered medicine online and had it delivered to my room,” said Gorimbo, who made the walk to the hallowed UFC Octagon at 10pm SAST time on Saturday.
“I didn’t even want to tell my coaches, but they figured it out, and they realised I was sick. But I didn't say anything, either. I just told them my voice was different. I only told them at the end of the fight. I was like ‘eish, I have such a bad flu’. But here we are, unfortunately, I am going to infect some people on the plane back home. I am sorry,” said Gorimbo on Instagram.
@juliankiewietz
IOL Sport