Rising Kiwi MMA Israel Adesanya knows exactly how far he can go in the UFC, backing himself to surpass one of its biggest stars of all time while he prepares to take down another.
"I'll be bigger than Conor (McGregor)," he told Engage Media Group. "I'm coming for those numbers. I don't even have to chase them, they'll chase me."
Adesanya's confidence, which rivals that of the outspoken Irish fighter, has always been there but people are starting to buy into it after he burst onto the scene in 2018.
His year was almost the complete opposite of McGregor's. The Irishman finally returned to the UFC after two years but in his title fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov, he was soundly beaten by submission.
Adesanya on the other hand, claimed four wins in four octagon appearances - two via knockout and the other two by decision.
With those results, Adesanya is now set to take on UFC middleweight legend Anderson Silva in the co-main event at UFC 234 in Melbourne next month.
The 29-year-old holds plenty of respect for Silva but remains as confident as ever.
"I'm player one in this. If you guys could see me from my point of view, from my first-person shooter, from where I've come from and looking at everything now, it's just like I planned every single thing and all the variables along the way I've adjusted to and adapted to easily.
"You guys thinks it's cool to watch from your point of view, but from my point of view, it's cool for me to watch my own rise and I can't wait 'til I take all those numbers."
There's plenty on the line for Adesanya in his biggest fight to date with UFC boss Dana White promising him (and Silva) the winner will get a title shot.
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