28 October 2023 , 06:25
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If you close your eyes and concentrate really hard you can probably, just about, imagine it.
Francis Ngannou has closed the distance to Tyson Fury, slipped the world champion's ram-rod jab, rolled under a hook, closed his own eyes, prayed, and landed a right hand from the Gods. Fury is instantly transported back to the 12th round in Los Angeles in 2018 when Deontay Wilder looked to have put the lights out on the Brit's inspiring comeback.
But this time, there is no 'Undertaker moment', no revival from the dead - and no surviving until the final bell. Fanciful, right? But that is what Ngannou must do tonight in Saudi Arabia if he is to shock the world and write his name into boxing history. And if that all sounds familiar, the same was broadly said about Conor McGregor when he took on Floyd Mayweather six years ago - albeit swapping the right hand for the Irishman's left.
McGregor had convinced his fervent fans that the same punches which had knocked out Jose Aldo and Eddie Alvarez in the cage would have a similar effect on the best boxer of his generation. In the end, Mayweather toyed with the Dubliner, stopping him in the 10th round, a few minutes later than he had planned. McGregor was unruffled, of course.
The fight was stopped too early, he complained. I landed more punches on Floyd than Manny Pacquiao, he boasted. But perhaps the most telling sight was of McGregor plugging his new whiskey at the post-fight press conference, million-dollar smile plastered over his face. And that is what tonight's clash in the desert is; a simple cash-grab.
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An expensive one, mind, with the Saudis splashing out over £60million in purses as well as a few million more on dragging the world's best - including McGregor and Mayweather - to ringside. But as a sporting spectacle, don't get your hopes up. Ngannou has said all the right things this week - and he probably does believe he can land *that* one punch which would upset Fury's plans to return here in eight weeks to face Oleksandr Usyk for all four heavyweight world titles.
And who are we to tell him not to dream? He did, after all, spend 14 months travelling from Cameroon to Paris before fighting as an illegal immigrant and making his way to the UFC where he would eventually rule the world. But with a clear head, this fight goes only one way, Fury's way. The only question is how early. And with the first bell not ringing until 1am local time, perhaps Fury will do his best to enjoy an early night.
After all, he can't afford to pick up a freak injury with Usyk waiting in the wings. But perhaps he will play around with Ngannou, for the entertainment of his Saudi paymasters if nothing else. The fight is scheduled for 10 rounds, it may just sneak into the second half.