UFC heavyweight contender Ben Rothwell believes that one more huge victory will put him squarely at the top of the division.  It is with that belief that he will step into the Octagon against former UFC Champion Junior dos Santos in the main event of UFC Fight Night Zagreb.

You can watch the main card of UFC Fight Night Zagreb live on TSN2 at 2pm et/11am pt.

Rothwell is on a roll with stoppage victories in his last four fights and only one of those even reaching the third round, his TKO victory over Brandon Vera at UFC 164.  Now he steps in against dos Santos, a veteran of both title challenges and title victories, but a man that is coming into the bout off a defeat.

“It’s a fight that I’m really excited for, I’ve been calling out Junior for the last year, year and a half now,” Rothwell told TSN.ca. “He’s a guy that, the one loss is out-weighed by the fact that he has a win over Stipe (Miocic), Cain (Velasquez), Werdum and he’s a former UFC Champion.”

The Kenosha, Wisconsin native is hoping to put the finishing touches on his title shot application that already includes the four consecutive victories and two performance of the night awards during the run.  He believes that adding dos Santos’ name to the four previous fighters will make a case that the UFC will not be able to ignore.

“The reason this fight makes sense and I accepted it is because it’s going to be a big win against a big name and it’s going to be the fifth in in a row, it’s what I needed and it’s what I’ve been asking for,” said Rothwell.  “It’s the type of set up where if I just wait around I could have campaigned for (a title shot) and my name was already in the mix, but I think with this, with a fifth win, it does exactly what I need it to do, it makes it undisputed. “

The card will be the first held by the UFC in Croatia and will also be the first time Rothwell is competing in the main event bout in the promotion.   Main eventing is an honour that he does not take lightly, or for granted.

“It’s a huge point in my career, not many people can say they’ve been in the main event in UFC and it’s a step towards that title and accomplishing things that only a few people on the planet have been able to do.”

Rothwell is able to do something even less people on the planet can and that is apply his vicious fight finisher known as the Gogo choke.  He’s captured his last two victories with it; including making Josh Barnett submit to a hold for the first time in his career.  He’s described it as being caught in a bear trap and he owes it and his improved ground game to the work of his coach Luiz Claudio.

“It’s unique and the jiu-jitsu world is curious and I’ve seen a lot of videos coming out trying to figure out what’s going on with it,” said Rothwell.

“It’s Luiz Claudio (Rothwell’s coach)  and it’s not just the choke, he’s implemented a lot of different parts of my game, on my back, on top and the way I deal with my wrestling now he’s completely revolutionized my game. The Gogo choke is just a small part of it and look at the impact it’s had.  I’m definitely excited for the future, I have a lot to show in my game and I’m ready for anyone anywhere.  I’ll end the fight on the feet and I’ll end the fight on the ground against anyone in the world.”