Aussie Dan Kelly locks in grudge match against Chris Camozzi at UFC Fight Night Melbourne

And the four-time judo Olympian and veteran Melbourne fighter is accustomed to proving his critics wrong.

So with another fight locked in — UFC Fight Night Melbourne at Rod Laver Arena on November 27 — the 38-year-old is eager to silence the nay-sayers and lippy American opponent Chris Camozzi.

Kelly and Camozzi, who fights out of Colorado, recently traded barbs on Twitter before confirmation on Wednesday night that they would lock horns in 10 weeks.

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“These guys call me out because they know it’s going to be an easy fight,” Kelly, of Footscray, said.

“He said ‘let me put another loss on that record of yours ... I wouldn’t mind coming to Australia for my birthday’.

“And I said ‘no problem, it will be nice to fight someone slower than me’ and then he got real narky saying ‘wait until you see what I do to do’ and I said ‘no worries tough guy’.”

Californian Camozzi, 29, will come to Australia with a 24-11 fight record and will be the firm favourite.

“I will be the underdog again and it’s fine. I’m happy to wear that hat,” Kelly said.

“I’m too old and slow and I haven’t got a gas tank, apparently. They can keep thinking what ever they like. I know how hard I work and I know what I can do. It’s all going OK so far, so I don’t mind.”

Engaging in a public, verbal stoush is new ground for the quietly-spoken Kelly, but he’s prepared to back it up.

“It is (new territory), but at the end of the day it is a business,” he said.

“When he asked for it, I thought ‘this is a good fight for me’. It’s going to be hard, but style wise it’s OK for me so I decided to stir the pot to see if I could get what I want.

“He has good stand up, he’s very durable and a southpaw. He knows what I’ll try to do to him and I know what he’ll try to do to me. It will be a hard, drawn-out fight and that’s what I’m preparing for.”

With a 4-1 record in the UFC, Kelly knows a win over Camozzi will be crucial in the context of his career.

“If I win this one it puts me in a good position,” he said.

“To be honest, I don’t like all the talk that goes on about money and fights. You go out there and fight and your financial stuff and marketability will take care of itself.”