Niko Price

gone completely crazy

Coming back from retirement as a replacement opponent, Price is described as a clearly worse version of himself with faded stance defense and conditioning, but still carrying power and volume that can turn a fight into a brawl. The analyst calls him the better overall grappler of the two, lacking a narrow specialty but able to work and reposition from his back.

He calls Smith the clearest favorite on the entire card, explicitly considers an upset path for Price and rejects it, with no real hedge on the win itself beyond that brief, dismissed acknowledgment.

Price is read as an experienced veteran who can still put together good volume and power, but who the analyst says is showing real signs of decline: a style built on turning fights into brawls that now works against him as he gets backed up more easily, a striking defense that isn't the best, and durability the analyst says is 'starting to slip a little.' His grappling, by contrast, is still credited as good, with active work off his back.

He names Gorimbo the winner and cites his youth and upside, but closes by reaffirming Price is dangerous and could catch something, a live counter-threat flagged right at the end rather than a clean, unhedged commitment.

Known for exciting fights; brings real power and output on the feet, favoring a brawl, which has worked for him before but also gets him backed up. The analyst's own striking-defense grade here is negative, and separately he says Price's toughness looks to be slipping as a trend. On the ground he shows good jiu-jitsu, stays very active off his back, and has rarely scored knockouts from bottom position.

Explicitly picks Morono to land a shot and finish Price, naming the round as the only open question, not the winner.

Brawler whose aggression once worked in his favor, but the analyst explicitly says his striking defense and durability have faded lately, pointing to a recent loss where he was dropped quickly. Still credited with good volume, power and active bottom-game Jiu-Jitsu.

Calls this a genuinely tough call, says he'd lean against both men versus almost anyone else in the division, and leans Price mainly for being the younger man rather than for a clear stylistic edge; closes with the root-beer idiom paired with advice to stay off the fight outright, which reads as a true coinflip rather than a disguised lean.

Price is a good striker with decent volume and power, though he can be pushed backward and does not defend strikes particularly well. From his back he is active with jiu-jitsu, hunting submissions or a knockout off the bottom, though he is not considered among the most durable or highest-level welterweights.

admits his conviction is thin, yet still leans toward Price getting more productive moments overall

An awkward but effective striker with real jiu-jitsu of his own, who he thinks has the cardio and control to grind out rounds if he gets on top. He flags, separately from skill, that Price has a track record of prioritizing an exciting fight over the safest path to a win.