UFC Fight Night: Jonathan Micallef vs Themba Gorimbo Preview & Prediction
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Australian welterweight prospect Jonathan “The Captain” Micallef looks to extend his win streak in front of home crowd against the experienced Zimbabwean, Themba Gorimbo.
Jonathan Micallef vs Themba Gorimbo facts
What time are Jonathan Micallef and Themba Gorimbo expected to walk out?
Where is UFC Fight Night: Della Maddalena vs Prates? RAC Arena, Perth, Australia
Where can I get tickets for UFC Fight Night: Della Maddalena vs Prates? Click here for the latest ticket information for UFC Fight Night 275
What TV channel is UFC Fight Night: Della Maddalena vs Prates on? UK – TNT Sports / USA – Paramount
Where can I stream UFC Fight Night: Della Maddalena vs Prates? UK – TNT Sports can stream the event online via the TNT Sports website and HBO Max / USA – Paramount+ & UFC Fight Pass
UFC Fight Night: Della Maddalena vs Prates main card
Jack Della Maddalena vs Carlos Prates (Welterweight)
Beneil Dariush vs Quillan Salkilld (Lightweight)
Tim Elliott vs Steve Erceg (Flyweight)
Marwan Rahiki vs Ollie Schmid (Featherweight)
Shamil Gaziev vs Brando Pericic (Heavyweight)
Tai Tuivasa vs Louie Sutherland (Heavyweight)
UFC Fight Night: Della Maddalena vs Prates prelims
Cameron Rowston vs Robert Bryczek (Middleweight)
Junior Tafa vs Kevin Christian (Light Heavyweight)
Jacob Malkoun vs Gerald Meerschaert (Middleweight)
Colby Thicknesse vs Vince Morales (Bantamweight)
Ben Johnston vs Wesley Schultz (Middleweight)
Jonathan Micallef vs Themba Gorimbo (Welterweight)
Dom Mar Fan vs Kody Steele (Lightweight)
Jonathan Micallef: Heavy hitter riding a four-fight win streak
Jonathan Micallef (9-1) extended his win streak to four at UFC 325, pulling off an incredible comeback submission victory over Oban Elliott after being outstruck for the better part of two rounds. The 27-year-old southpaw earned his UFC contract with a unanimous decision on the Contender Series back in 2024, before debuting with an impressive decision win over Kevin Jousset. The Captain carries power in his striking, especially his kicks which he absolutely slams from his southpaw stance. His boxing can be wild and he’s not the cleanest defensively, often eating counters when he overcommits. His cardio however, is excellent, and he tends to settle into his fights, getting sharper as the rounds progress.
Themba Gorimbo: Veteran wrestler looking to find his footing
Themba “Mamba” Gorimbo (14-6) comes into this fight suffering back-to-back losses for the first time in his career, a 52-second submission defeat to Vicente Luque followed by a competitive decision loss to Jeremiah Wells in November last year. Prior to those setbacks, Gorimbo had built a four-fight win streak ending with a dominant decision over Niko Price. The Zimbabwean fights from an orthodox stance and does his best work as a pressure wrestler, mixing in sharp 1-2s with calf kicks at range. His striking arsenal is fairly limited, and his cardio has shown to fade in the later rounds, though that’s not too much of a surprise given how fast he usually starts.
Jonathan Micallef vs Themba Gorimbo prediction
On paper, Gorimbo is the cleaner, more technical striker, and he’ll probably catch Micallef with the straight down the pipe in this southpaw-orthodox matchup, especially in the first round as Micallef is the most static and Gorimbo is at his fastest. We’ve also seen Micallef’s face bleed and swell easily, which is never a great look on the scorecards.
However, Gorimbo couldn’t even find a finish over Niko Price, and that lack of finishing power means it’ll be unlikely that the Zimbabwean deters Micallef from marching forward and swinging heavy. The kicking game should be Micallef’s smartest path to victory, Jousset has a similar tall and long build to Gorimbo, and may even be perceived as a better striker, yet Micallef found significantly more success against him with kicks, than he did against Elliott with punches. Micallef should be looking to slam those body kicks all night against Gorimbo’s orthodox stance, with the caution of Gorimbo’s wrestling of course.
The age factor matters in this match up. Themba is now 35, and looks as if he’s hit a ceiling, whereas Micallef is still in the early stages of his career and only improving. I see Micallef eating some shots early, settle into the fight by round two, start circling away from Gorimbo’s backhand, and take over with his kicking game and heavy strikes as Gorimbo starts to fade.
Prediction: Jonathan Micallef to win
