Rafael Pedroza couldn’t envision a better destination than his opponent’s hometown for his U.S. debut.

Not a second went to waste when the opportunity was offered to face San Antonio’s Ramon Cardenas in the main event of this. Friday’s Showtime-televised ShoBox tripleheader. The card will take place at Boeing Center at Tech Port in San Antonio, where Cardenas will undoubtedly enter as the crowd favorite.

All that does is add to Pedroza’s pre-fight plans to make a statement in his first televised main event.

“The fact that I’m fighting in my opponent’s backyard motivated me even more to take this fight,” Pedroza told BoxingScene.com through translator and manager Carlos Gonzalez. “I need to win and prove myself to the Showtime team and to the fans in attendance.

“There will be a lot of people there rooting for their own guy. I need to make sure they are cheering for me by the end of the night.”

Pedroza (15-0, 11KOs) has fought exclusively in Panama throughout his pro career of more than six years. His last three bouts have gone the distance as he’s stepped up in competition, including a ten-round decision over Venezuela’s Yerny Betancourt (23-2, 19KOs) on May 23 in Bella Vista, Panama. Cardenas (22-1, 10KOs) has won ten in a row and arguably represents the stiffest test to date for the 25-year-old Panama City native.  

The fight came at the right time for Pedroza. It was decided as a team—which includes promoter Sampson Lewkowicz—that it was long overdue to take his act stateside and at a level where he can begin the transition to budding contender.

“The opportunity came and we took it” insisted Pedroza. “There wasn’t much more to it than that. I’m excited to fight in the U.S. for the first time. I know that I have to win spectacularly and show my skills so that there is a demand for me to keep fighting in the U.S.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox