Malcolm Wellmaker isn't letting newfound attention get to his head.

Aiming to remain humble, Wellmaker (10-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) is not ignoring or denying the hype that he's accumulated in the span of just two UFC bouts. He's acknowledging it, but staying on the same path, using the same recipe and the same work ethic.

"I've had the opportunity to go out to Vegas a couple of times and talk to a couple people in the organization," Wellmaker recently told MMA Junkie Radio. "They let me know that they have a lot of confidence in what I can do and they like the trajectory that I'm on. At this point, I think it's pretty raw that I have some star potential."

"… Everything has happened so fast, especially when I stop and think that it was just in April when everything took off for me. It is that everything is happening so fast, and my life is looking different. But it's not very hard for me to stay humble. I'm pretty much spending all my time around the same people I was with right before I blew (up). Everybody knows to stay honest around me, so my coaches don't take it easy on me. My family and everybody are happy for me, but I try to stay grounded."

There have been explicit signs that the promotion is high on Wellmaker, but implicit ones as well. Just look at Wellmaker's recent booking: a spotlighted slot on UFC 322 on Nov. 22 at Madison Square Garden against Cody Haddon.

Australia's Haddon (8-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) has won six fights in a row, finishing five of those opponents. His only career loss came to former UFC title challenger Steve Erceg. Wellmaker firmly believes he should be favored, but isn't taking the outcome for granted.

"This guy Cody has a very extensive background, a three-time champion in boxing as a junior," Wellmaker said. "He's a black belt, they say, in grappling. Dude is legit. To have the name he has on his resume with Steve, and then to come into the organization with a finish on Contender Series and then a dominant decision against somebody with Cub Swanson in their corner, I respect the dude. He's a dog. When you watch him fight, when he goes and is relying on his instincts, he wants warfare. I think the dude is a very skilled fighter but he's also a fighter's fighter. He brings a lot of exciting things to the table that make for a great matchup and a great fight for me."

Should he win, Wellmaker will take a step closer toward his ultimate goal of becoming UFC champion. That opportunity might not be as far away as some may think, hypothesized Wellmaker.

"We're talking about how long it'll be before I'm fighting Merab (Dvalishvili) for his title," Wellmaker said, when asked what the conversations he'll be having one year from now. "I think at that point, and things go my way, I'll definitely be ranked by then. It'll be a matter of how many more fights before a title shot, possibly. That's if Merab has it at that point, but I think he'll have a pretty dominant run and it'd be the perfect story for me to be able to challenge Merab for his title."

Until that time comes, Wellmaker will continue to build his brand. He's remained observant of those who have come before him and did an excellent job of self-promotion. While he's absorbed bits and pieces, Wellmaker said the only person he's going to try to act like is himself.

"There are things that I watched a lot of different people do in different ways, like Sean O'Malley, in particular," Wellmaker said. "The way he used social media was just super powerful. He had a vision for the way he wanted to do his career. That's something I try to take notes from. But there are also other fighters, like Khabib, who are super respectful. That's something I admire about them. That's a quality I want to take from them. So different athletes have different things I admire. But I wouldn't say there's a particular athlete that I'd say I'd walk my particular path exactly like they did."

This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Machine vs. Machine for UFC gold? Malcolm Wellmaker thinks so

MMA Mixed Martial Arts News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos