SHANGHAI, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Shi Ming (17-5) will make her full UFC debut on Friday when she headlines the Road to UFC card against Brazil's Bruna Brasil (17-5).

The Yunnan native drew attention last year with a spectacular head-kick knockout of Feng Xiaocan (16-5) in her Road to UFC final at UFC Fight Night Macao on Nov. 23.

Shi, a full-time doctor, revealed that she competed in the Road to UFC tournament without informing her parents about her fighting career. It was this admission and the juxtaposition between her daytime job as doctor and dream to be fighter that struck a chord with many fans of the sport and drew widespread attention not only in home country but overseas too.

Speaking to media ahead of her debut, Shi said she was feeling both the pressure and nerves of fighting under the spotlight against a larger opponent. At 157 centimeters tall, she has often found herself at a physical disadvantage.

A natural 47.6-kilogram atomweight, Shi must compete in the UFC's 52.2kg strawweight division, the lightest in the promotion, where most fighters are able to cut down from heavier frames.

"That will be my wish [to fight at atomweight], because I'm more comfortable with that as an Asian, because Asians are usually smaller than our counterparts in Europe and the U.S.... In fact, in Japan and South Korea, there are a lot of female players who are very skilled," Shi admitted. "I think maybe South Korea or Japan, they have more high level wrestlers but they are also very light. If UFC has an atomweight, maybe they will come to UFC as well, then UFC atomweight division will be also [at a] higher level."

Despite these challenges, Shi maintains her genial personality, something she admits can complicate fight night.

"I try not to meet my opponents before the fights because if I met them, I would feel they were my friends. I would not want to attack them in the fight. But yesterday, I saw my opponent and I immediately felt that she was my friend and that could impede my movements or judgment during the fight."

Shi has already developed a loyal following at home and abroad, but she knows that personality and one famous knockout are not enough to build a career at the sport's highest level. In the UFC, victories matter most - and winning under the main event spotlight before home fans matters even more. ■