China’s “fighting doctor” Shi Ming has spent the past two months doing intensive overtime to gather enough leave for her Ultimate Fighting Championship bout next week, when she will face another kind of pressure: fighting with “half the world” watching her.

Shi, who works at a hospital in Kunming, will face India’s top female fighter in the championship for Road to UFC Season 5 starting at the Octagon in Macau on Thursday. She is scheduled to compete in the opening round on the second day.

The MMA fighter, a crowd favourite with a 17-6 record, will face Puja Tomar, India’s first female UFC fighter.

Shi said on her social media that she expected the fight against Tomar, who holds a 9-5 record, to be an evenly matched duel.

“I am very excited because this is an evenly matched China–India duel. That is to say, 3 billion people worldwide will watch this match, half the world will focus their attention on our fight, and I feel a lot of pressure,” she said.

The Macau event offers fans the chance to get a first look at rising MMA prospects from across the Asia-Pacific as they compete for a coveted UFC contract.