UFC 302 winner Niko Price: 'I don't plan on retiring until God takes my legs from me'
NEWARK, N.J. – Niko Price still has plenty of fight left in him.
Price (16-7 MMA, 8-7 UFC) snapped his two-fight losing skid by defeating Alex Morono (24-10 MMA, 13-7 UFC) Saturday at UFC 302 from Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. Price won their first meeting in 2017 by knockout, but the result was overturned to a no contest after he tested positive for marijuana.
The Florida native has fought former champions like Robbie Lawler, perennial contenders like Donald Cerrone, and rising welterweights like Randy Brown – and is ready to take on whoever the UFC puts in front of him.
“I don’t plan on retiring until God takes my legs from me or my arms, so I’ll be here as long as (Sean) Shelby sends me nice contracts,” Price told MMA Junkie and other reporters during the post-fight news conference.
Price has plenty of motivation to fight. The 34-year-old is expecting his seventh child with his wife.
“A month ago, she’s like acting all weird,” Price said of his wife. “I’m like, ‘You pregnant, girl?’ She goes, ‘What do you think?’ and I was like, ‘That’s a yes.’ No. 7’s in the oven. Let’s go boys.”
Price, who was a sizable underdog going into the fight, was confident that he had done enough to get his hand raised against Morono.
“Going to the scorecards, I figured that I had it because I had more ground control with ground-and-pound,” Price said. “When I’m on the ground, I’m not just sitting there looking at you. I’m not a guard player. I’m not a lay-and-pray-er.
“I’m trying to open up elbows. I’m trying to open up hammer fists. I’m continuously swinging. Even when he had me in that omoplata, I was trying to elbow him in the head, but the mechanics wasn’t working. I figured I had it. I felt it.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 302.