BROOKLYN, N.Y. – Far be it from Renato Moicano to go around issuing aggressive callouts, but he does have an idea as to who could be next for him in the octagon. And he makes a solid case for it, too.

Moicano (12-1-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) had a bit of a rough start, but quickly picked himself up and outpointed fellow featherweight Calvin Kattar (18-3 MMA, 2-1 UFC) in the main card of Saturday’s UFC 223.

The dominant win put the first blemish in Kattar’s UFC record and spelled recovery for Moicano – who also had a spotless octagon sheet until recently. In fact, Moicano had been unbeaten in his entire pro career before Brian Ortega came along in July 2017.

Ortega, then a prospect, would go on to become a serious contender with the consecutive fiinishes of Cub Swanson and Frankie Edgar after that. Moicano, in turn, used this time to make some changes. He moved his camp from Brazilian capital Brasilia to Florida, where he began training at American Top Team, and took some time off the octagon to adjust. The outcome of that, we saw on Saturday.

As for what’s next? Allow Moicano to politely present his case.

“I don’t want to disrespect people, I don’t want to call names,” Moicano said. “But I think it makes sense to do the winner of Frankie Egdar vs. Cub Swanson. Because we lost to Ortega. The three (of us) lost. So let’s see who can win. I want to test myself with the tough guys in the division.

“If (they) don’t get me this fight, I’ll take another. I don’t choose fights. I’m always looking forward. I’m always looking to test (myself) against the best. This is the way I think.”

Ex-lightweight-champ Edgar (22-6-1 MMA, 16-6-1 UFC) and Swanson (25-8 MMA, 10-4 UFC)  are set to meet at UFC Fight Night 128, which takes place April 21 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.

Whether or not Moicano, who at least made it to the third round before being choked out by Ortega, will get the matchup with either veteran, we’ll have to wait and see. But, in the meantime, he gets to enjoy a win he believes was needed after the tough loss to Ortega.

Moicano is, justifiably, happy. But that doesn’t mean he sees a flawless performance. After getting Kattar hurt, for instance, the Brazilian featherweight believes he could have one a better job at smelling the blood and making sure he got a finish.

Was Moicano surprised that Kattar proved to be a tough foe?

“No, no, no,” Moicano said emphatically. “I came into this fight knowing Kattar is a very good fighter. He has a strong heart.”

If anything, Moicano believes he was the one doing the surprising in the pay-per-view main card bout at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.

“People underestimate me – because I saw the odds, the odds were against me,” Moicano said. “Kattar was favorite. When I walked into the hotel, I saw people talking, ‘This will be an easy fight for Kattar.’And I think, ‘They don’t know me.’

“Because if they know me, they would know I am a good fighter and I have heart. And a fight of mine was never easy. I can lose. Everybody loses. But it will be a tough fight.”

To hear more from Moicano, check out the video above.

And for complete coverage of UFC 223, check out the UFC Events section of the site.