Ahead of the biggest opportunity of his career, Ozzy Diaz believes he’s finally putting everything together in his fighting career.

Diaz (7-1) faces fellow middleweight prospect Joseph Pyfer (8-2) in the featured bout of Tuesday’s Dana White’s Contender Series 47 event, with both athletes hoping to secure a UFC contract with their performance. For Diaz, it’s the culmination of a 12-year run in the sport, putting in four years as an amateur before turning professional in 2015 and then taking a very methodical approach to his schedule.

Diaz admits he would have been happy with things progressing a little more quickly but now realizes the added time has helped him grow as a fighter.

“There were a lot of life obstacles, I want to say, and injuries throughout the process,” Diaz told MMA Underground. “There was a time where it was hard for me to get fights, but, you know, I feel like everything took as long as it had to take for me to get to this point, and for the first time in my life, I feel like I’m right where I need to be, man. You know what I mean? 

“People take their whole life trying to figure that out, and I honestly feel in my heart that I am right where I need to be. Everything is just right at the moment that it’s supposed to be happening, you know?”

Tuesday’s event streams live on ESPN+ from the UFC Apex. Check out the full interview with Diaz in the video above.