Themba Gorimbo has built a reputation in the UFC as someone who refuses to fold—inside the Octagon or outside of it.
But in a recent appearance on CNN’s African Voices, the Zimbabwean-born welterweight made it clear that his toughest boundaries have nothing to do with fighting.
Speaking with host Larry Madowo from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Gorimbo revealed that he is no longer in contact with any of his relatives. “I don’t talk to any of my family members anymore. None. Not one of them,” he said, explaining that he made a deliberate decision to cut off communication.
According to Gorimbo, staying connected came with expectations that threatened both his focus and his independence.
The fighter traced the fracture back to moments when support mattered most. After suffering a loss earlier in his career, Gorimbo said criticism didn’t just come from strangers online—it came from people close to him.
He recalled that some relatives openly celebrated his defeat, a reaction that reshaped his view of loyalty and entitlement. “That changes a man, especially at the lowest time of your career,” he said.
Gorimbo pushed back against the idea that his success belongs to anyone else by default. In the interview, he spoke candidly about what he called “entitlement” and the pressure placed on successful people in African communities to provide financially without limits.
“The Black tax is real,” he said, referring to the expectation that one cannot say no when asked for money.
For him, distance became the only way to protect his goals. “If I keep talking to my family members, I’ll not achieve my goal,” Gorimbo explained.
Despite that separation, Gorimbo hasn’t turned his back on giving altogether. He’s been vocal about supporting causes in Zimbabwe on his own terms, including funding boreholes in his home village of Bikita and paying school fees for children.
The difference, he said, is choice. “When my heart says I must do something, I’ll do it,” he noted. “I’m not doing it for Zimbabwe. I’m doing it for myself.”
Even his views on legacy reflect that independence. Gorimbo shared that he doesn’t want to be buried in his village, calling instead for his ashes to be scattered in South Africa’s Kruger National Park, a place he considers personally meaningful.