BRISBANE, Australia – After a 16-month layoff, Leslie Smith is ready to build off a successful return to the cage and make the most of her 2016 campaign.

On Saturday Smith (8-6-1 MMA, 2-2 UFC) earned a unanimous-decision win (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) over fellow bantamweight Rin Nakai (16-2-1 MMA, 0-2 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 85.

After missing all of 2015, Smith said he goal is to go 4-0 this year and put herself in title contention. And for her next opponent? She wants former title challenger Bethe Correia (9-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC), who hasn’t fought since an August loss to then-champ Ronda Rousey.

“I’ve been wanting to fight Bethe for a long time – for a long time,” Smith said after her FOX Sports 1-televised preliminary-card bout at Brisbane Entertainment Centre in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. “I think it would be a great fight. I think the fans and I are going to win.

“I understand why she wouldn’t want to take it – because I don’t think it would be a win for her.”

Smith, a former Invicta FC title challenger who won four “Fight of the Night” bonuses with the promotion before signing with the UFC in 2014, is now 2-2 in her current home, where she’s earned an earlier win over Jessamyn Duke and suffered losses to Sarah Kaufman and Jessica Eye. However, in the UFC’s wide-open 135-pound female division, she knows a little momentum can go a long way.

“My goal is to fight four times this year,” she said. “I feel like the women’s division is still a little bit like the Wild West, and getting four solid wins is going to put me in line for a title shot. And that’s my goal.”

Check out the full conversation above.

And for more on UFC Fight Night 85, check out the UFC Events section of the site.