It’s been a painfully long road for Nicco Montano since winning the inaugural UFC women’s flyweight title in 2017.
Following her win over Roxanne Modafferi to become champion, Montano was forced to sit out the first half of 2018 due to a lingering foot injury that plagued her during filming of “The Ultimate Fighter” as well as her preparation for the title fight. Once she recovered, Montano was scheduled to defend her title against Valentina Shevchenko last September but a rigorous weight cut landed her in the hospital, which led to the fight being cancelled and her 125-pound championship stripped away.