Tom ‘Kong’ Watson has the chance to make a global name for himself as he takes on a high profile fight in Brazil.

The Southampton Mixed Marshal Arts middleweight faces hometown favourite and former title contender Thales Leites in Rio de Janeiro in the early hours of tomorrow morning.

Watson is out there on his own for the contest but with the fight getting screened live on TV in America, and in this country, he is optimistic a good showing could really propel him up the ranks to UFC superstardom.

“The last fight was on Facebook so outside of England not many other than real diehard fans probably saw it but this is a big chance for me globally,” said Watson.

“It is likely to get a good audience in America and Brazil and I will try and go out and entertain like I always do.

“Throughout my career I’ve tried to make every fight bigger than the last and more of a challenge.

“This is another step I need to take and test myself against a guy who has fought for the title in my division.”

Fighting in Brazil will certainly be a new experience for Watson, and unfortunately means a lot of his Southampton based fan club won’t be there to cheer him on.

“You have to deal with a 16 hour journey to get there,” he reflected when asked what problems the location of the fight might hold.

“It’s not too hot in Brazil right now but I will have to deal with the crowd. Going to UFC events out there is like going to a football match and he’s Brazilian so I know what to expect – it’s not going to favour me.

“But I have learned with most fight fans even if they don’t support you to start with if they like what they see then they will back you.

“At this time of the year it’s a little too expensive and a little bit too far for people to come over from Southampton to watch me so I go there as a lone wolf to get the job done and get out of there again.”

Watson goes into the contest on the back of a stunning victory over Stanislas Nedkov which earned him a $150,000 bonus for fight of the night and knockout of the night.

He faces a tough test in the shape of Leites, who is returning to UFC on the back of some impressive results after having been dropped.

“He’s a great fighter,” said Watson. I’ve seen some of his fights since he’s been out of the UFC and I know he’s a very dangerous guy.

“I think he got released because he had a couple of boring fights, the first against Anderson Silva for the middleweight title and then he lost a decision I think he probably should have got.

“He’s well known as a very good grappler but he’s decent when standing up and I expect him to utilise that and then try and take it to the ground. His background is in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu but it really won’t be much different to how I prepare to fight each time.

“This is the top level in the world so he’s not just good at that, he’s good at everything, but I know I can win.”

Watson’s fight on UFC 163 will be broadcast on BT Sport. Programming starts at 1am tomorrow.