Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Themba Gorimbo, who Johnson gifted with a new house.Photo:Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images; Louis Grasse/PxImages/Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesThemba Gorimbo is opening up aboutDwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s grand gesture.Earlier this week, The Rock, 51, purchased the UFC fighter, 32, a new house after the pair connected on Twitter due to similar backstories — like Gorimbo, theFast & Furiousstar only had $7 in his bank account when he was an up-and-coming athlete.Johnson — whovowed to lease the Miami home and cover all expensesfor as long as Gorimbo wants to live there — told the Zimbabwean-born fighter, “This place is yours. You don’t have to think about anything.““The only thing you think about is your family, getting them over here, getting them with you, your training and becoming [a] champion,” the actor concluded.Now, the welterweight fighter is sharing his family’s reaction to The Rock’s gesture.“When I told them that we got the house, we are going to move to Miami and stuff like that, my wife was a little bit crying,” he toldEntertainment Tonight. “And my daughter apparently said, ‘God is blessing us because we have suffered so much.’ And it’s very true.”UFC fighter Themba Gorimbo.Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC“We’ve been struggling in the background,” he added. “For her to be saying that, that hits me a little bit as well.”The UFC fighter went on to say that his whole family is ecstatic. “My daughter is super excited,” he toldET. “She’s the most excited, more than everybody.”“The other one, she’s too little,” he said of his younger daughter. “She does not know anything. All she knows is ‘Dada.’”On top of all the excitement and relief, Gorimbo said, his spouse has some worries. “My wife is a little bit nervous,” he told the outlet. “She’s, like, scared of change. She lived her whole life in South Africa and Zimbabwe, so she’s never been on a flight overseas. This will be her first flight overseas!“The UFC fighter admitted that, when he shared his story, he did not think The Rock would ever “actually respond to the thing.” “I was already back in Zimbabwe then,” he toldET. “I’ll be honest. When he said, ‘I got your back, brother,’ [in] the tweets … it didn’t sound real for me.”Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who gifted UFC fighter Themba Gorimbo with a new Miami home.Gilbert Flores/Variety via GettyGorimbo also shared that Johnson giving him the keys to the home was the “best part” of the big day, and he still becomes emotional while thinking about it. “I’m still happy to this day,” he said. “I didn’t know all the things [that were going to happen] but I even thanked him before. Because you know when you [just] connect with people? That’s how it felt.”“The energy is kind of different, you know?” he added. “And I felt the energy in [Johnson’s] presence.”Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.The UFC fighter shared that he has gleaned more from theBlack Adamstar than a home — he also learned from Johnson’s life and wisdom.“Small things count in life, if you look at them properly,” he toldET. “You cannot just be blowing up in an instant, you know? The small things differentiate everyone from many, you know, and that’s one thing I realized. [Johnson] is very disciplined. He knows that’s probably the reason why he is the way he is, and I’m very grateful that I learned that lesson and I’m gonna take it to heart.”While reflecting on the events of this week, Gorimbo compared his life to a film. “Everything worked out well,” he said, smiling. “I’m blessed to be here. I’m blessed to be in this movie.”
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Themba Gorimbo, who Johnson gifted with a new house.Photo:Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images; Louis Grasse/PxImages/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images; Louis Grasse/PxImages/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Themba Gorimbo is opening up aboutDwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s grand gesture.Earlier this week, The Rock, 51, purchased the UFC fighter, 32, a new house after the pair connected on Twitter due to similar backstories — like Gorimbo, theFast & Furiousstar only had $7 in his bank account when he was an up-and-coming athlete.Johnson — whovowed to lease the Miami home and cover all expensesfor as long as Gorimbo wants to live there — told the Zimbabwean-born fighter, “This place is yours. You don’t have to think about anything.““The only thing you think about is your family, getting them over here, getting them with you, your training and becoming [a] champion,” the actor concluded.Now, the welterweight fighter is sharing his family’s reaction to The Rock’s gesture.“When I told them that we got the house, we are going to move to Miami and stuff like that, my wife was a little bit crying,” he toldEntertainment Tonight. “And my daughter apparently said, ‘God is blessing us because we have suffered so much.’ And it’s very true.”UFC fighter Themba Gorimbo.Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC“We’ve been struggling in the background,” he added. “For her to be saying that, that hits me a little bit as well.”The UFC fighter went on to say that his whole family is ecstatic. “My daughter is super excited,” he toldET. “She’s the most excited, more than everybody.”“The other one, she’s too little,” he said of his younger daughter. “She does not know anything. All she knows is ‘Dada.’”On top of all the excitement and relief, Gorimbo said, his spouse has some worries. “My wife is a little bit nervous,” he told the outlet. “She’s, like, scared of change. She lived her whole life in South Africa and Zimbabwe, so she’s never been on a flight overseas. This will be her first flight overseas!“The UFC fighter admitted that, when he shared his story, he did not think The Rock would ever “actually respond to the thing.” “I was already back in Zimbabwe then,” he toldET. “I’ll be honest. When he said, ‘I got your back, brother,’ [in] the tweets … it didn’t sound real for me.”Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who gifted UFC fighter Themba Gorimbo with a new Miami home.Gilbert Flores/Variety via GettyGorimbo also shared that Johnson giving him the keys to the home was the “best part” of the big day, and he still becomes emotional while thinking about it. “I’m still happy to this day,” he said. “I didn’t know all the things [that were going to happen] but I even thanked him before. Because you know when you [just] connect with people? That’s how it felt.”“The energy is kind of different, you know?” he added. “And I felt the energy in [Johnson’s] presence.”Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.The UFC fighter shared that he has gleaned more from theBlack Adamstar than a home — he also learned from Johnson’s life and wisdom.“Small things count in life, if you look at them properly,” he toldET. “You cannot just be blowing up in an instant, you know? The small things differentiate everyone from many, you know, and that’s one thing I realized. [Johnson] is very disciplined. He knows that’s probably the reason why he is the way he is, and I’m very grateful that I learned that lesson and I’m gonna take it to heart.”While reflecting on the events of this week, Gorimbo compared his life to a film. “Everything worked out well,” he said, smiling. “I’m blessed to be here. I’m blessed to be in this movie.”
Themba Gorimbo is opening up aboutDwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s grand gesture.
Earlier this week, The Rock, 51, purchased the UFC fighter, 32, a new house after the pair connected on Twitter due to similar backstories — like Gorimbo, theFast & Furiousstar only had $7 in his bank account when he was an up-and-coming athlete.
Johnson — whovowed to lease the Miami home and cover all expensesfor as long as Gorimbo wants to live there — told the Zimbabwean-born fighter, “This place is yours. You don’t have to think about anything.”
“The only thing you think about is your family, getting them over here, getting them with you, your training and becoming [a] champion,” the actor concluded.
Now, the welterweight fighter is sharing his family’s reaction to The Rock’s gesture.
“When I told them that we got the house, we are going to move to Miami and stuff like that, my wife was a little bit crying,” he toldEntertainment Tonight. “And my daughter apparently said, ‘God is blessing us because we have suffered so much.’ And it’s very true.”
UFC fighter Themba Gorimbo.Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC
Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC
“We’ve been struggling in the background,” he added. “For her to be saying that, that hits me a little bit as well.”
The UFC fighter went on to say that his whole family is ecstatic. “My daughter is super excited,” he toldET. “She’s the most excited, more than everybody.”
“The other one, she’s too little,” he said of his younger daughter. “She does not know anything. All she knows is ‘Dada.’”
On top of all the excitement and relief, Gorimbo said, his spouse has some worries. “My wife is a little bit nervous,” he told the outlet. “She’s, like, scared of change. She lived her whole life in South Africa and Zimbabwe, so she’s never been on a flight overseas. This will be her first flight overseas!"
The UFC fighter admitted that, when he shared his story, he did not think The Rock would ever “actually respond to the thing.” “I was already back in Zimbabwe then,” he toldET. “I’ll be honest. When he said, ‘I got your back, brother,’ [in] the tweets … it didn’t sound real for me.”
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who gifted UFC fighter Themba Gorimbo with a new Miami home.Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty
Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty
Gorimbo also shared that Johnson giving him the keys to the home was the “best part” of the big day, and he still becomes emotional while thinking about it. “I’m still happy to this day,” he said. “I didn’t know all the things [that were going to happen] but I even thanked him before. Because you know when you [just] connect with people? That’s how it felt.”
“The energy is kind of different, you know?" he added. “And I felt the energy in [Johnson’s] presence.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
The UFC fighter shared that he has gleaned more from theBlack Adamstar than a home — he also learned from Johnson’s life and wisdom.
“Small things count in life, if you look at them properly,” he toldET. “You cannot just be blowing up in an instant, you know? The small things differentiate everyone from many, you know, and that’s one thing I realized. [Johnson] is very disciplined. He knows that’s probably the reason why he is the way he is, and I’m very grateful that I learned that lesson and I’m gonna take it to heart.”
While reflecting on the events of this week, Gorimbo compared his life to a film. “Everything worked out well,” he said, smiling. “I’m blessed to be here. I’m blessed to be in this movie.”
source: people.com
