Gregor Gillespie has made it a point over and over so far in his UFC career to not call anybody out. He said it’s not his style, but after being out of action since January, he said it’s “time to play the game.”

Gillespie (13-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC), who sports a perfect professional record and is a rising contender in the lightweight division, wants a piece of former UFC champ Anthony Pettis (22-9 MMA, 9-8 UFC) this fall.

“The Gift” took to social media and made a respectful request to fight Pettis at UFC 244, which takes place Nov. 2 at Madison Square Garden in New York City (via Instagram):

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So for the last 6 fights everyone has been pressuring and annoying me to call someone out….I never wanted to but it looks like I am going to have to play the game…I want my first “call out” to count so…… @showtimepettis I think you are a great fighter, but you are in the wrong weight class, come back down to 155 and meet me at MSG on November 2. @arielhelwani @danawhite @showtimepettis @ufc @seanshelby

A post shared by Gregor gillespie (@gregorthegift) on Aug 28, 2019 at 12:03pm PDT

“So for the last six fights everyone has been pressuring and annoying me to call someone out. I never wanted to, but I think it’s time to play the game. I want my first call out to count, so ‘Showtime’ Pettis, although I think you’re a great fighter, I think it’s time to go back to 155 and meet me at MSG (on) Nov. 2. What do you say?”

Gillespie last fought at UFC on ESPN+ 1 in January, defeating Yancy Medeiros by second-round TKO. It was his fifth consecutive stoppage win, all of which have come inside the first or second round.

It’s been tough for Gillespie to get the jump in competition he’s been craving, though, which was likely his motivation for stepping out of his comfort zone to go after the fight with Pettis.

It remains to be seen if “Showtime” will oblige, though. Pettis is coming off a hard-fought loss to Nate Diaz at UFC 241 in which he fought most of the bout with a damaged foot. It marked his first loss since moving up to welterweight, but his team indicated a return to 155 pounds is in the future.

Pettis has said he would like to fight again this year, but his recovery and potential weight cut may not allow him to align with Gillespie’s desired UFC 244 timeline.