STEVIE Ray knows he could enhance his chances of making millions with the UFC if he opened his mouth more – but the Scot prefers to do his talking in the octagon.

The Scottish lightweight prospect is in the same division as Irish superstar Conor McGregor. The flash- talking golden boy of mixed martial arts has made himself a household name with his ability to cause opponents as much pain with his tongue lashings as he does with his striking.

Kirkcaldy fighter Ray – one of three home fighters who will appear on the bill when the UFC visits Scotland for the second time next month – knows he can cash-in if he were to take his recent Twitter spats with fellow Scot Paul Craig and Marc Diakiese to a more public stage. But the 27-year-old is also wary of the dangers of talking himself into trouble.

“You have to be marketable,” he said. “In the UFC, you might be the best fighter in the world but if you have the personality of a badger you’re not going to get paid the big money.

“There are so many guys who moan about it. Gegard Mousasi is beating everyone but all his opponents get paid way more than him.

“You get guys like [former WWE wrestler] CM Punk come in and get paid $500,000. At least someone like Conor McGregor backs it up. But his personality has taken him to the top a lot quicker.

“I kind of wish sometimes I had the arrogance and cockiness in me – but I don’t. I prefer to be humble. I don’t think you should ever try and be someone else.

“You just look fake. There are a lot of McGregor wannabes out there – but when they get caught out they just end up looking stupid.”

Ray knows he will, however, have to do more than talk a good game when he faces American Paul Felder at Glasgow’s SSE Hydro on July 16. Having recorded two straight wins over experienced UFC campaigners Ross Pearson and Joe Lauzon, he has just one more bout on his contract with the promotion.

But Ray believes victory will put him on a path to his dream of topping the bill in Las Vegas.

He said: “I’m looking forward to the Glasgow show. I fought here when the UFC made its first stop off in Glasgow a couple of years ago.

“It was mental. The night could not have gone any better. I walked out in front of 13,000 Scots, won my fight and got the performance of the night bonus.

“It was definitely the highlight of my career so far – but I wouldn’t say that was what my whole career had been aiming towards. I want to go to Vegas and fight on the big cards there. That’s when you can start making plenty of money.

“I feel that I’m definitely on the right trajectory to get there, though. If I win next month, that will be three wins in a row.

“Some people have said that Paul Felder is a bit of a step down because I’ve just beaten Pearson and Lauzon, who are quite well known. But people who follow UFC know that Felder is a really dangerous guy. He’s been in with a lot of tough fighters, guys like Edson Barboza, so it will be tough.

“This is the last fight on my contract. People were expecting to see me in against a top 15 guy because of that, someone with a bigger name. But I’m not stupid. You need to play it smart. Why fight a fighter from the top 15 for the money you have already agreed?

“When you sign a contract, you agree what you’re getting paid regardless of where it is or who you’re fighting. This could be the co-main event in Vegas and I’d be getting the same as I am fighting on the undercard at Glasgow.

“So I will play it right, hopefully get the win to go three in a row, six wins from seven in the UFC, and become a top 15 fighter. Then that will put me in a stronger position when it comes to renegotiating.

“I’ll be able to say: ‘I’ve done this, I’ve done that – now show me the money’.”