Alexander Volkanovski talks about his thoughts while being deep in Brian Ortega's guillotine choke

Despite being almost flawless since capturing the UFC 145lb title, Alexander Volkanovski was close to losing to Brian Ortega during their clash at UFC 266. Moreover, the champion has now detailed his thoughts during one specific submission attempt.

The Australian and 'T-City' were the opposing coaches for TUF 29 and got under each other's skin on multiple occasions throughout the season. Despite his team losing the first four fights, the featherweight king rallied back and essentially won the coaching war.

During a recent interview, Alexander Volkanovski gave insight into what went through his mind when Ortega managed to lock in a tight guillotine choke. He said:

"Everything was just textbook, beautiful. The way he did that was actually beautiful to watch... I remember holding on, doing everything that I thought I needed to do, trying to get that hip up, and it wasn't working. The lights were still sort of dimming and I'm like, 'F*ck, I ain't stopping. I'm gonna keep pushing, I'm gonna keep going. He's either gonna tire [and] his arms will gas before I go out or I die, whatever it is, we'll see'... I obviously knew that he was tiring and I'm already, while I'm still getting strangled, thinking, 'I'm gonna get up, I'm gonna f*ck this guy up.'"

Brian Ortega is known for his mastery of jiu-jitsu and has managed to pull off seven submission victories in his 15 career wins thus far.

Check out what Alexander Volkanovski had to say about the iconic moment in the video below:

---

How important was Alexander Volkanovski's win over Brian Ortega?

Excluding the fact that he retained his title, Alexander Volkanovski's win over Brian Ortega was one of the most crucial moments in his career.

Just one year prior to the fight against the BJJ expert, the Aussie won a close split decision over Max Holloway. Questions were starting to be asked about his level as a champion.

The Ortega win did a lot for Volkanovski and was the first of his three straight dominant victories over tough opponents in his division. A loss would have pushed him down the pecking order and he would have likely had to fight his way back into title contention with a submission defeat next to his name.