Titan FC Featherweight Champ Andre Harrison Eyeing Spot on UFC’s Debut Card in N.Y.

The casual fan may not yet know Andre Harrison’s name , but the Long Island, N.Y. native is gradually gaining recognition in the mixed martial arts community.

But if you ask him, Harrison simply brushes aside any notion of budding stardom.

“I hear people talking about it but I don’t pay it no mind,” he told Sherdog.com in a recent interview. “I don’t buy into it, man. My job is real simple: just keep training and keep fighting. I don’t worry about what other people’s expectations are or what they think I should do. I only worry about my camp and what they think.”

Whatever he’s being doing is clearly working. He’s undefeated in 12 professional MMA fights and he’s already scooped up a credible title. He dominated Desmond Green last September to snatch the Titan FC featherweight title via unanimous decision and followed that triumph up with a close, hard-fought decision over longtime veteran Steven Siler in March.

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Harrison, who wouldn’t say whether he’s been contacted by the UFC or Bellator, is set to defend his title Friday night in the co-feature of Titan Fighting championship 39 against grizzled vet Deivison Ribeiro, a man with three times as many pro fights as “The Bull.” But when asked about it, Harrison scoffed at the difference in experience.

“I don’t think that will be too big of an advantage because at the end of the day, this is a one-on-one sport,” he said. “I have been doing this since I was seven years old with wrestling and the only difference now is that I can punch and kick people. I don’t really put much [stock] into his MMA experience over mine.”

Harrison said that he plans on pressuring his foe from the start because that’s where the openings will present themselves. Harrison knows of the dangers of going to the ground with a jiu-jitsu black belt but said that in order to be a true champion, one has to fight everybody as they climb the ladder toward greatness.

But in this sport, the truest forms of greatness are typically found inside the Octagon. Even though “The Bull” is coy about speaking about the Las Vegas-based promotion, he did admit that he’d love to be a part of what will be a landmark event in his home state.

“Yeah, that’s something I would want,” he said of the UFC’s fast-approaching landmark card in November that will take place at historic Madison Square Garden in New York. “That would be history. I would love to be a part of it so I guess I have to win on (Friday).”

Titan FC 39 will stream live on UFC Fight Pass beginning at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.