UFC 270: Brandon Moreno overcame 'worst year of his life' to become Mexico's first UFC champion.

In 2018, Brandon Moreno lost everything.

Following two successive defeats in the UFC, he was cut from the promotion; his professional career in tatters at the age of 24.

A husband and father of two living in Tijuana, Mexico, Moreno no longer had a way to provide for his family.

«That was a breaking point for me, 2018 was the worst year of my life,» Moreno, now 28, told BBC Sport.

«I had nothing, man. I had nothing to give a better life to my two daughters and my wife in that moment.

»I don't want to even remember that year because it was so terrible."

What followed has been one of the great redemption stories in MMA.

Moreno would go on to be re-signed by the UFC, work his way up the flyweight division and dramatically claim the title in 2021, becoming the first Mexican-born champion in UFC history.

Now the 'Assassin Baby' is set for his first title defence, in the third fight of an epic rivalry with Brazil's Deiveson Figueiredo, at UFC 270 in Anaheim, California on Saturday.

Moreno says it was a change in mindset in 2018 which has led him to this moment.

«I'm good at fighting, and that's it. I was thinking 'what can I do if I don't fight?', he said.

»I started thinking about my life, and what I wanted to do. I was just very disciplined and trained hard, evolving my game.

«Thank god everything is perfect now, but at that moment it was hard.»

Saturday's bout between Moreno and Figueiredo will be the next chapter in one of the UFC's most compelling rivalries over the past two years.

The pair first met in December 2020 where Figueiredo, 34, defended his flyweight title in a majority draw.

Moreno would come out on top in the rematch six months later, however, dominating the fight and submitting his Brazilian counterpart with a rear-naked