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n Imperial Valley native will once again step into octagon.

Although for Ricky Calatayud, it will be the most important step he’s ever taken, as it will be putting him closer than he’s ever been to becoming a part of the largest mixed martial arts organization in the world.

Throughout his 10-year career, Calatayud has had his sights set solely on one thing: signing a professional contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Dreams of fighting for UFC are now within reach for the 34-year-old, who is set to fight in a main card event during Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series on Aug. 28.

With a professional record of 13 wins, two loses and zero draws, the El Centro resident is set to go toe-to-toe against Adam Antolin, 35, in a flyweight match. “I hope my skills will takeoff and showcase in the show. With Antolin, I see a lot of holes in his game and I’m looking to capitalize on that. People can expect to see a different Ricky and a different style of fighting,” stated Calatayud on his upcoming fight.

Fighting of out El Centro, Calatayud has been preparing with two-a-day sessions with local gyms Sparta Boxing and Morales Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and traveling once a week to San Diego to train at the SD Combat Academy under Tenth Planet Jiu-Jitsu and MMA Team Hurricane Awesome.

The 34-year-old enters the fight on a 13-win streak, with his last fight taking place October 2016 which ended in a guillotine choke submission win against Enrique “Iron Boy” Espinoza.

“I just hope people see that anything is possible and I just hope to make my family, trainers and Imperial Valley proud,” expressed the 34-yearold.

Although for Calatayud, the passion for fighting in the octagon couldn’t have been more unexpected.

Initially set upon becoming a doctor, earning all the necessary credentials and even getting accepted into top medical schools, the 34-year-old eventually dropped his path to steady career and has since chased becoming a professional in what was originally just a part-time hobby.

To put into perspective how unexpected a career in MMA was for the El Centro fighter, he had never actually thrown punches on a mat until he was in college.

Despite being born in Escondido, Calatayud is a true a Valley native, traveling at the age of four with his family to live in Calexico and eventually graduating in 2001 from Central Union High School.

The only fighting experience the 34-year-old had growing up was a few karate and wrestling classes he took between ages seven and eight, and did no sport activities after the age of 10.

It wasn’t until after high school while attending Imperial Valley College that El Centro resident would step into the ring. Calatayud explained he had no desire to fight at all, although after seeing the quick money his friend Danny Vasquez would make fighting across the border, he became a little more open to the idea.

In 2006, the 34-yearold would then strap on the fight gloves to make some extra income and, in the moment, saw it as no more than just a part-time job to help pay for his school.

Calatayud ended up losing his first two fights, leading him to reevaluate what he was doing.

“After the two losses, it was an eye-opener. It’s not just a grappling and submission game,” recalled the 34-year-old on what he learned from his first two fights.

Calatayud then began to practice boxing, wrestling, Muay Thai and jiu-jitsu in an effort to become an overall better fighter. He also graduated in 2007 from IVC with an associate’s degree in Science.

The fighter then saw much more positive results in his third fight in 2007, ending in an arm bar submission which broke his opponent’s arm. That same year, Calatayud attended California State University, Los Angeles, where he participated in the school’s wrestling team for a while and continued professionally fighting in octagon.

After graduating from Cal State in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and minor in biology, the fighter was drawn between two paths as he was accepted into the medical school programs for University of Southern California, University of California, Los Angeles, and University of California, San Francisco. With the tuition for the medical programs being extremely high and now having a genuine interest in his once part-time hobby, Calatayud decided to take a chance in pursuing an MMA career.

“Med school was just ridiculously expensive so I thought let’s where this takes me,” said the 34-year-old. “I just knew if I never make anything of myself fighting, education would be the thing I’d fall back on.”

Calatayud returned to El Centro in 2009 and made training for upcoming fights his main priority.

Throughout his 10year career, the fighter noted his match in 2011 was one of the most notable as he won the Latin American Warrior 125-pound championship.

“As I started to compete, it became addicting. The adrenaline, the winning. I wasn’t doing it so much for recognition, but for myself,” said Calatayud on fighting.

Deciding to take his training to another level, the fighter began training at SD Combat Academy in 2012. The 34-year-old would then experience the UFC for the first time, an experience that would ignite his biggest dream yet.

At the academy, Calatayud helped trained fighter Liz Carmouche for her upcoming fight, which was against Rhonda Rousey in 2013 at UFC 157 in Anaheim.

The 34-year-old also ended up coaching alongside Carmouche’s corner during the match, which gave an everlasting taste of UFC to Calatayud.

“Walking out to that ring, that was a very overwhelming experience. Hearing the crowd and music, it was just something my heart was set into. It was something that I wanted to be a part of,” remembered the fighter at his time spent at UFC 157.

After a few more fights and exposure, Calatayud received his first call from UFC in 2014 as a last minute replacement in a fight, although it was scratched off last minute. The fighter received a similar call later that same year from UFC although the fight was also scratched.

In 2015, Calatayud once again received a fight offer from UFC, although had to decline to due to an injury.

“The UFC knew who I was, who I am, so I just kept on fighting and winning,” stated the fighter, who received the call on June 6 for his upcoming fight while at a hospital due to a tragic incident involving his family.

“It was a bittersweet, emotional situation. I just remember when I got the phone call, I was crying because I met my goal. I’ve always I wanted to fight in a match like that. Life hits you when you least expect it and now I believe things happen for a reason,” stated Calatayud.

Next month, the fighter will be given a chance to compete on a stage presented in front of the UFC president and others in charge of the organization.

His opponent, Antolin, enters the match with a similar record, with twelve wins, three loses and zero draws, and an eight-win streak.

While the match doesn’t guarantee a contract with UFC, it gives a great amount of exposure towards one.

“I’m a firm believer I can get that contract. I believe I can fight in the UFC and I will fight in the 125 weight division. I know I can make some noise in the 125 weight division,” remarked Calatayud. The match will be held at TUF Gym at the UFC Headquarters in Las Vegas and will be streamed on UFC Fight Pass.