Alexander Volkanovski feared lungs wouldn’t last 5 rounds at UFC 333

Alexander Volkanovski says illness left him questioning whether he could go the distance against Movsar Evloev.

Speaking to Brendan Bradford in comments shared by Home of Fight on X, Volkanovski explained how concerns about his breathing added urgency to his search for a finish at UFC 333.

Alexander Volkanovski explains how illness influenced his second-round TKO of Movsar Evloev

Volkanovski said he needed to take deep breaths as he increased the pressure in the second round.

“I had to take some big breaths,” Volkanovski said. “You could see that I started putting that pressure on, especially in the second round. It was like, alright, let’s start finding this finish.”

The reigning Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight champion admitted he was unsure whether he could sustain that effort for all five rounds while ill.

“Again, I don’t want to go five rounds. I don’t know if these lungs can hold up being [sick] and all. And not only that, I started to see everything and knowing that the finish probably would come,” he added.

Volkanovski stopped Evloev with punches at 4:54 of the second round to retain his featherweight title.

👀 Alexander Volkanovski admits he had doubts about himself heading into his fight with Movsar Evloev after coming down with the flu. “I had to take some big breaths… You could see that I started putting that pressure on, especially in the second round. It was like, alright, let’s start finding this finish. “Again, I don’t want to go five rounds. I don’t know if these lungs can hold up being [sick] and all. And not only that, I started to see everything and knowing that the finish probably would come.” via: Brendan Bradford— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) October 28, 2026

Source: sports.yahoo.com — article syndicated from the publisher’s feed; all rights remain with the original publisher.