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But it was his actions when the fight ended that drew the most attention. Before the official decision, Huerta hoisted Garcia's arm in the air, acknowledging his opponent's valor. Then he and Garcia held hands and dropped to their knees in prayer, giving thanks that neither had been hurt. "It takes two people to have a great fight, so why steal all the glory?" Huerta says. "Leonard was my opponent that night. He was never my enemy." Garcia's mother was so touched by the gesture that the next day she expressed her gratitude to Huerta over the phone.

Meanwhile, as Huerta's career has flourished, he's finally found the family that eluded him as a kid. Ramirez, the English teacher who was so moved by Roger's life narrative, stayed in touch with him after he moved to Minnesota and legally adopted him in 2002. "She was the first person to show me unconditional love," Huerta says. "I call her Mom, and when I go to Texas her grandkids call me Uncle Roger and jump on me when I'm sleeping. It's the best feeling in the world."

He's also formed a second family of sorts with his training team in Minnesota. When Huerta received a fat fighting contract from the UFC, he spent it not on a fancy car or a bland McMansion but on a massive home near downtown St. Paul. The intention is for all of his training partners to move in and then convert the basement into a gym. "These are the guys who helped get me where I am," Huerta reasons. "It would be weird not to want to share everything with them."

The UFC is still grappling with the perception that it's barbaric-many people, perhaps understandably, can't get past the visual image of two men fighting in a metal cage -- so it's all too happy to promote Huerta. Dana White, the league's brash president, says, "Roger got into the UFC, and I was like, Holy sh--, this kid is an animal. He's got looks. He's got smarts. He's got an amazing story. And he fights like a dog. This kid is a home run, and he's a big reason we're thinking about [staging a card] in Latin America."

Huerta's most recent success came during the UFC 74 card on Aug. 25 in Las Vegas. With the academic semester yet to begin, Ramirez was able to make it to the fight, surely the lone 60ish high school English teacher in attendance. Several of her grown children came too. The supremely conditioned Huerta was at his best, mauling his opponent, Alberto Crane, with a hail of kicks, elbows and punches. When the referee (mercifully) stopped the fight late in the third round, Huerta raised his hands in triumph.

Then he went out to celebrate with his family.

Jon Wertheim is currently working on a book about UFC. To purchase his latest book, Running the Table: The Legend of Kid Delicious, The last Great American Pool Hustler, go here.