Dubai: UAE-based Filipino fighter Vaughn “The Spawn” Donayre will make his One Fighting Championship (One FC) debut when the promotion comes to Dubai World Trade Centre on August 29.

The 35-year-old Cebuano lightweight from the Champion Club in Jumeirah Lakes Towers has signed a two-year contract with the Singapore-based One FC for six fights off the back of a professional record of seven wins and one loss.

Despite not yet knowing who his opponent will be, the 2010 Pan Asian Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gold medallist is confident of victory in front of his home support.

“I can’t lose this fight,” Donayre told Gulf News. “I’ve just signed a big contract, so whoever they are putting me up against I’ve got to prove to One FC that I belong.

“I would like to know who my opponent is so I can prepare, but a fight is a fight. The way you fight doesn’t really matter. I’m pretty clumsy and I’ve heard people say I fight ugly, but maybe it works for me and keeps the opponent guessing, I just lay it all out there.

“That’s my biggest strength as well as my biggest weakness, I just go in without regard for safety. I could get knocked out. My teammates are telling me to play it safe and fight smart, but I guess I’m not a smart fighter. Inside the cage everything changes, in training I hear the coaches but in the cage I shut down and go into autopilot, I just bang it out.”

Donayre lost his last fight on his UAE debut by unanimous decision in the Global Fighting Championship (GFC) against Australia’s Gorkhan Turkyilmaz at Dubai World Trade Centre in May. But the former mechanical engineer doesn’t see the defeat as a setback.

“I specifically asked to fight Gorkhan because he’s an experienced guy,” he said.

“I lost by decision but his face was much more disfigured than mine, so I’m happy. Defeat wasn’t something to be ashamed of. I can carry on now and I believe I’m ready for my One FC debut.”

Despite his advancing age, Donayre still thinks he has what it takes to succeed in the championship.

“A guy’s age has got nothing to do with it. It’s all about mileage for me. If you start young you retire earlier. I only started professionally at the age of 28. I’ve had seven years to prepare for this moment and I think I still have two to four years ahead of me.

“It was a big risk to leave my nine-to-five job to follow my passion, but it’s going to reward me sooner or later. If you are passionate about something, it’s going to take care of you.”