UFC middleweight veteran Constantinos Philippou has been given a golden opportunity to establish himself as one of top dogs in the UFC's middleweight division when he faces top ranked middleweight Tim Boetsch this Saturday night.

Boetsch was originally slated to face Chris Weidman in a number one contender match up, but the former collegiate wrestler was forced from the contest due to injuries.

Upon learning of Weidman's removal from UFC 155, Philippou volunteered to take the bout on short notice.

The New York native is currently riding a four fight winning streak in the UFC with victories over Jorge Rivera, Jared Hamman, Court McGee and Riki Fukuda.

Philippou believes a victory over Boetsch would make him one of the top fighters in the division, and get him that much closer to a potential title shot with champion Anderson Silva.

"If I beat Tim Boetsch, I'm going to make them know me," Philippou told MMAFighting. "Then I'll keep fighting. Eventually, if you beat everybody else and Anderson Silva is the only one left, they're going to have to give you the fight. I don't want to argue my way to anything. That's not me. Give me an opponent and let me fight."

Though Philippou's ultimate goal is to become champion, unlike others in the division, he is in no hurry to face Silva.

"They're arguing over who's going to fight Anderson Silva," he asked. "I don't want to fight that guy. Are you kidding me? I don't want to fight him. I'd actually argue just to stay away from that guy. I don't care. If it happens, good."