MANILA, Philippines—WWE Superstar Sheamus is confident that there can one day be a homegrown Filipino wrestler in the biggest sports entertainment company in the world.

Sheamus, in Manila to promote the WWE's live show at Araneta Coliseum on September 20, knows all about how big wrestling is in the country and got a firsthand look at it on Thursday afternoon during an appearance at Bonifacio Global City.

Plenty of fans lined up at Skinny Mike's for a chance to take a picture and get an autograph from the Irish Superstar, who also held a 40-minute question-and-answer session with the media.

"I love the country, and I'm having a great time," said Sheamus, who performed when WWE last visited in 2016 but has been out of action since WrestleMania 34.

The multiple-time champion has no doubt that a Superstar can one day hail from the Philippines, but he also stressed that they will need plenty of hard work, dedication, and passion.

"Of course they can, absolutely. They absolutely can," he said. "You know, it doesn't matter where you're from. It's all about the individual and how much passion they have to want to do this."

Sheamus pointed out that the WWE roster now has plenty of foreign talent, and indeed, there have been wrestlers with Filipino lineage in the company before.

Batista has expressed pride in his Filipino roots, even getting a tattoo of the Philippine flag. TJ Perkins, a former Cruiserweight Champion who now wrestles in Impact, is also Filipino-American.

For a full-blooded Filipino wrestler to make it, Sheamus said that person needs "the right guidance and training, proper training, proper diet."

"And I'd love to see it," he said. "That's what the WWE is after."

"They're after talent from all over the world, everywhere. It's more now than ever, so there's definitely an opportunity here for someone to step up," he added.

"Just step up. If you're watching, just step up. Take it, take that opportunity."

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