HOUSTON – The math adds up, as far as Julianna Pena is concerned, to a fight between her and Ronda Rousey.

Naturally, each of them has a test in front her before any potentially meeting. But if Pena (6-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC) beats Jessica Eye (11-3 MMA, 1-2 UFC) tonight the way she’s planning to, and if Rousey beats Holly Holm next month as a massive favorite, Pena likes her chances of getting a crack at the women’s bantamweight champ.

“I didn’t get in this sport to be on the bottom tier of the fighter roster,” Pena told MMAjunkie. “I got in this sport to let the world know that I’m the toughest female in the 135-pound division. I’m the hardest female, and I get very offended when a girl out there thinks she’s going to run through me or she’s going to beat me. I want to make that very clear.”

Pena and Eye open the pay-per-view main card tonight at Toyota Center in Houston. Pena, the Season 18 winner of “The Ultimate Fighter,” is more than a 2-1 favorite. On “TUF 18,” she fought for coach Miesha Tate – opposite coach Rousey.

Pena won her fight to get into the “TUF” house by unanimous decision, then had two submission wins in the house before beating Jessica Rakoczy with a first-round TKO to win the “TUF 18” title. Those three early “TUF” wins don’t count toward her official record, but as far as Pena is concerned, they ought to be.

Those three wins, along with her two official UFC wins over Rakoczy and Milana Dudieva, which took place in April, have her at 5-0 in the UFC.

“I think I’ve proven I’ve been a finisher,” Pena said. “I demolished everyone they put in front of me on ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ and those were real fist fights to me. That puts me at 5-0 (in the UFC), and after Saturday night I’ll be 6-0. The only other girl out there that’s 6-0 right now is Ronda. We’re both proven finishers, so I feel like that makes sense. I feel like that’s a fight some people want to see.”

Lining up opponents for Rousey hasn’t exactly been difficult. It has been, however, slightly controversial of late. Tate thought she was getting the next shot after her win over Eye at UFC on FOX 17 in July. But instead, in August, the UFC announced Rousey would fight Holm. Tate remains in the mix with four straight wins.

But Pena could elevate herself in the conversation tonight with a win over Eye.

“I think it’s a great matchup and it’s definitely the biggest challenge in my career so far,” Pena said. “I’m just looking forward to getting in there and going toe-to-toe with a girl I know has a chip on her shoulder and is looking for a win. It’s going to be an exciting striker-vs.-grappler matchup, I think.”

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