CHICAGO –  Karl Moore is on an upswing and he’s enjoying every second of it.

Nearly 12 years a professional in MMA, Moore (11-2 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) finally has carved out his spot on the promotion ahead of his bout Friday at Bellator 297. The bout marks his first in the United States and Moore is happy to have proven to the promotion he’s a show worth taking on the road.

“I don’t know about every Irish guy, but for me, one of the best things about being in MMA, one of my main goals is to fight in a premiere organization, one of the biggest shows in the world, in a massive stadium,” Moore told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a news conference Tuesday. “I mean, I’m in Chicago. What is it, the second biggest city in America? In a class arena. It’s one of the MMA lifetime goals. For me, it’s like I’ve already won. I’m fighting in Chicago in the biggest organization in the world and I get paid to do it.”

Moore, 31, takes on fellow Bellator-ranked light heavyweight Alex Polizzi (10-2 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) on the prelims at Wintrust Arena. With a victory, Moore will enter a four-fight winning streak. After years of battles on the regional scene trying to enter a big promotion, Moore recognizes that’s an accomplishment.

“The only change that I could’ve really pinpoint that’s made a massive difference is I’m never really taking time off,” Moore said. “I’m taking time off, but it’s not like in the past. I would have a fight and then maybe not train for a couple weeks. … I’ll always train. It’s not like I’m going through a training camp and going only 50 percent and have to bring it back up again. I’m always maintaining a high level and I’m just bumping up weeks before the fight. That’s the only thing that’s different? I’ve always been consistent. But these last, say, 12-14 months, I’ve really just put my head down and got to working.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 297.