Tony Ferguson refused to tap out and was choked completely out in scary scenes at UFC 291

Tony Ferguson was brutally choked out by Bobby Green at the very end of the final round in their UFC 291 encounter after refusing to tap out.

El Cucuy returned to the Octagon for the first time since his defeat to Nate Diaz in September 2022 and was hoping to put an end to a wretched losing streak.

He took on Green in a three-round lightweight encounter and showed some early promise, putting his opponent on the canvas with a big right hand in the opening round.

However in the third and final round, Green took control and got Ferguson on the ground with around 20 seconds left.

He locked in an arm triangle that was extremely well applied, with Ferguson doing his very best to wriggle out of it but failing to do so as more pressure was applied on the neck.

But being the proud, badass fighter that he is, there was no way on earth that the 39-year-old was ever going to tap out.

Instead, the submission victory for Green was confirmed with six seconds to spare after Ferguson was choked unconscious and referee Dan Miragliotta brought a halt to proceedings.

Watch BOBBY GREEN SUBMITS TONY FERGUSON IN THE FINAL SECONDS! Tony Passed out but did not tap. He is a real beast. Tony Ferguson is still my boy😥💔- #UFC291 pic.twitter.com/LcKRKr1YdK

— Allwrestling.info (@Allwrestlingdot) July 30, 2023

Ferguson was then attended to by medics after suffering a sixth consecutive defeat and many have called for him to hang up his gloves for good.

However, the Ultimate Fighter winner believes he is "barely hitting my prime" and has no plans to retire from MMA anytime soon.

“Nobody else is going to tell me (to retire),” Ferguson told media on Wednesday ahead of the fighter, as per MMA Junkie.

“They can propose or say, ‘Oh, Tony. Whatever. He’s going to retire.’ No, motherf*ckers. F*ck you. I’m going to be done when I want to be done. But I’m also going to have to do what I have to do to get to where I want to get. Five fights and a title, baby.”