Themba Gorimbo Instagram

UFC fighter Themba Gorimbo will no longer sleep on a couch in the back of his gym after Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson gifted him a new house in Miami.

Johnson posted a video showing the emotional encounter he had with Gorimbo during a surprise visit after the actor and fighter interacted on social media. The meeting came together after Gorimbo revealed that he was down to $7 in his bank account prior to getting his first win at UFC Vegas 73, which caught Johnson’s attention.

After his win over Takashi Sato at UFC Vegas 73, Gorimbo announced plans to auction off his fight kit so he could help fund the building of a water well in his native village in Zimbabwe rather than putting the money towards his own career.

“I was happier raising that money than I was after my win,” Gorimbo told MMA Fighting. “When I got home where I come from and I help these people build this borehole and I helped these kids pay for their school supplies, I don’t have entitlement. I don’t want to go back so I can say ‘I helped you guys.’ I don’t want to see that ever again, but that happiness can only help me. If I help, I feel so good, and when I feel so good, I’m dangerous [in MMA].”

The gesture moved Johnson, who famously pursued his own dreams after once having only $7 in his bank account, which eventually served as the name for his company, Seven Bucks Productions.

“I’ve got to tell you, your story moved me,” Johnson told Gorimbo during their first face-to-face meeting. “When I found out you had $7 in your bank account, I know what that’s like. I was here in Miami when I had $7, but then also you win your second fight, then you sell your fight kit, you buy a water well for your village in Zimbabwe so your people can have clean water.

“Because you could have taken that money and put it down on a car, on an apartment, but you didn’t. You took care of your people, and that just says exactly who you are, and that’s why I flew all the way in. Just to look you in the eyes and tell you, I got your back.”

The interaction didn’t stop there, as Johnson saw where Gorimbo slept on a couch surrounded by luggage and an inspirational sign made to remind the 32-year-old veteran what he was fighting for. Johnson then took a drive with Gorimbo that ended at a house the famed WWE superstar purchased for him, which is where Gorimbo can now reside while continuing his training in Miami.

“I wanted to look you in the eye and I wanted to tell you welcome home,” Johnson said as he handed the keys over to an emotional Gorimbo.

Gorimbo had tears in his eyes as he took a tour of his new house, telling Johnson he was going to use this gift as a way to help continue giving back to his home village in Africa.

“Because you got me this house, I was supposed to get a house to come here,” Gorimbo explained. “The money that I was going to use for the house, I’m going to build another borehole in my village now when I land in Africa.”

Gorimbo, who boasts a 1-1 record in the UFC, also vowed to make Johnson proud as he continues his career, with high hopes to make an even bigger impact moving forward.

“I will become a champion,” Gorimbo said. “Trust me.”