Less than one year ago, Brandon Moreno first appeared on UFC television as a cast member on The Ultimate Fighter tournament of champions.
He was one of 16 small-company flyweight champions brought in to see who would get a shot at Demetrious Johnson. In that first fight, as the champion of the World Fighting Federation, he lost via submission to Alexandre Pantoja in the first round.
Fast forward 10 months and the 23-year-old Moreno has upset two ranked opponents and is being talked about as a potential title contender.
A heavy underdog, Moreno shocked Louis Smolka with a first-round submission in his official UFC debut in October.