Dubai: His reputation having preceded him, Filipino pugilist Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista was pleasantly surprised to be greeted by numerous "home" fans on his arrival at Dubai airport.
However, with the weight of expectation growing heavier by the moment, Bautista, the current WBO Intercontinental Super Bantamweight champion, knows he faces a mighty challenge when he takes on Saichon Sotornpitak of Thailand in the headline bout of the four-fight KO6 "The Philippines v The Rest of the World" card.
Bautista is now under pressure to not just keep his reputation intact, but to please his compatriots who will be arriving in their hundreds to watch their nation's heroes take on challengers from countries as diverse as Tanzania and Thailand.
"I'm happy to fight here in Dubai," said Bautista, who has lost just twice in 29 professional outings inside the ring. "I am comfortable and I know I can do it. I hurt my hand badly but now I feel no pain and I know that I can make it. I'm looking forward to a great fight."
Bautista has fought as the undercard on big nights involving fighting greats Oscar De La Hoya, Floyd Mayweather and his "hero" Manny Pacquiao, so Friday night's bloody affair at Chi, The Lodge, shouldn't be too much of a worry for the 23-year-old.
He said: "This is my first visit and when we landed here we felt at home. A lot of Filipinos recognised me and I'm happy that there are so many of my fans here. People took pictures of me and they knew who I was. Earlier I used to think only people in the Philippines knew me, but that seems to have changed."
Bautista praised Pacquiao for "opening the door of the world to Filipino boxers".
"Manny Pacquiao, for me, is great and I want to become a Manny Pacquiao that's why I came back to boxing [from injury]," he said. "It's a dream and I know I can make it big because he made it big."
WBC Youth Intercontinental Flyweight champion Milan Melindo is also set to fight on the card. He takes on Colombian Devis Perez, while the up-and-coming Hilario "Bon Jovi" Canillas fights Tanzania's Fred Sayumi.
Melindo praised Pacquiao. "Manny has been a great influence on Filipino fighters because he's been beating all of the best fighters in the world — the Mexicans, so we're very proud of him. We look up to him," he said.
Of his fight, the 22-year-old added: "My strategy is to watch how my opponent fights in the first round. I study their style well and then I fix them up. I'm prepared for any fight so I'll just go through the first round and then take it from there."
