Nearly three years ago UFC Fight Night 44 headliner Jeremy ‘Lil Heathen’ Stephens found himself incarcerated on assault charges for nearly beating a man to death. After spending two weeks behind bars, Jeremy Stephens proved his innocence, and was a changed man from the experience. He spoke with Fox Sports today to discuss how the incident changed him, and made him fall in love with the sport of MMA again.

“It was really a good thing. At the time, I thought, ‘Why is this happening to me?’ It really ended up being a good thing. It took my life by surprise and hurt me financially. It crushed me, broke me down. This is when I’m most dangerous. I’m back to falling in love with the training. I’m a better person and a better father. It was a good and bad thing altogether. It was a good learning experience. I’m kind of thankful for it.”

UFC Fight Night 44 takes place this Saturday from San Antonio Texas on Fox Sports 1, and is headlined by Cub Swanson and Jeremy Stephens.