Australian UFC star fan says he's irresistible to Hollywood heavyweight, reveals father's strange reaction when he told him he wanted to become a professional fighter

• Steve Arseg will fight for the UFC flyweight title at UFC 301 on Sunday.
• The Australian star is often compared to Hollywood actor Steve Carell.
• Made to scrap with his father before he allowed him to fight.

Australian UFC title contender Steve Arseg has opened up about his father's hilarious reaction to his desire to start competing in MMA ahead of the biggest fight of his career.

On Sunday at UFC 301, Erceg will face UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja for the Brazilian championship title.

If the 28-year-old Perth native does the unthinkable and wins, his improbable road to a title shot will become the fastest in UFC history.

“Astro Boy” has only appeared in the Octagon three times and is ranked No. 10 in the flyweight division, but he is looking to leave with the belt.

Erceg walked into a local MMA gym at the age of 14, inspired by watching Frank Mir submit Brock Lesnar at UFC 81.

He then made his professional martial arts debut in 2016, but he had to get his father's permission before doing so.

“I had to talk to my dad first, and his response was, 'I don't think I'm tough enough to start fighting,'” Erceg revealed during the UFC 301 countdown.

“So he said he was going to go out in the backyard and have a fight and see what would happen there.

“So me and my dad had a little wreck in the backyard, and when it was over, my dad came home and said, 'Yeah, you can have your first fight.'

It was the beginning of an incredible rise on the domestic scene that would eventually lead to him winning the eternal MMA flyweight championship.

Fight fans often compare Erceg to Steve Carell's Michael Scott from The Office.

But the Perth star doesn't mind the memes and jokes and says he's fine with that.

“If I can't laugh, I'm going to be in trouble,” he told FOX Sports.

“When I do a job like this, people always make memes or say bad things about me…but thankfully I'm ready to deal with all of that.”

But Erceg believes security will be needed to remove him from Rio's arena on Sunday.

“I came here to beat my hometown champion,” Erceg said.

“So when I walk to the Octagon, there’s a very good chance that the crowd is going to say I’m going to die.

“Same thing after that, when I have the belt, the security guy throws a bottle at me and he has to kick me out.”

“I have to get on a plane and get out of there quickly because people are going to try to kill me.

“I think that's how it will turn out.”