Friday 19 October 2018 05:49, UK
Little is known about Walter Kautondokwa ahead of his WBO title fight, but could he become the latest in a line of African fighters who have shocked the boxing world?
The unbeaten Namibian has seized his opportunity as a late replacement to battle Demetrius Andrade for the vacant WBO middleweight title in Boston this weekend, live on Sky Sports.
After 16 knockouts in 17 victories, Kautondokwa has climbed the rankings towards a title fight, without the glare of publicity that usually surrounds a rising challenger.
Here are five other fighters from the same continent who followed a similar path before they made their name with stunning victories...
Forged in Accra, home to some of Ghana's best fighters, Kofi Jantuah's ring skills would come as a nasty surprise to Gilbert Eastman in their Commonwealth welterweight title bout in March 1999.
Jantuah would ruin Eastman's unbeaten record, pounding out an 11th-round stoppage win to become Commonwealth champion at Southwark's Elephant and Castle Centre.
Aside from a solitary knockout loss, Jantuah's only other defeats came at the highest level as he fell short against world-class fighters such as Kassim Ouma, Arthur Abraham and Dmitry Pirog.
Another Ghanaian welterweight, Joshua Okine had endured a difficult start to his professional career, losing on his debut and was then beaten on points by Ossie Duran in a Commonwealth title fight in Accra.
It would have been understandable if David Barnes had overlooked his unheralded foe, but Okine was determined to snatch a rare chance to shine in front of the cameras, flooring the Mancunian on the way to 12th-round stoppage at Manchester Arena in June 2005.
Okine earned a swift return to Britain, defending his belt against Kevin Anderson, and would suffer a split decision defeat to the Scot.
Tshifhiwa Munyai received the call to challenge Martin Power for the vacant Commonwealth bantamweight title after 11 wins in South Africa.
Power, who was topping the bill at York Hall in Bethnal Green, struggled to contain 'The Atomic Spider', eventually succumbing to a ninth-round stoppage defeat in June 2006.
Munyai would defeat Lee Haskins and Power once again on these shores, although he was blasted aside in the second round when he challenged Scott Quigg for the WBA super-bantamweight title in 2014.
Namibia's Julius Indongo was plucked from relative obscurity as a voluntary challenger for IBF super-lightweight champion Eduard Troyanovsky, a highly-rated Russian with a perfect 25-fight professional record.
But the matchmaker would have been forced to answer a few awkward questions after Indongo had ripped the belt away with a jaw-dropping knockout at the Khodynka Ice Palace in Moscow in December 2016.
Indongo would add the WBA title by beating Ricky Burns on points, but was stopped by pound-for-pound star Terence Crawford in a battle to become the division's undisputed champion, and then suffered another knockout loss at the hands of Regis Prograis.
Few would have expected Hassan Mwakinyo to spring an upset when he was named as the opponent for Sam Eggington at Arena Birmingham in September.
But Eggington's plans for a big-name bout at super-welterweight were ruined as he was stopped in the second round by the fired-up Tanzanian fighter.
Mwakinyo's repeated calls for a Kell Brook clash in his wild post-fight celebration are yet to be answered, but other Brits might think twice before facing him.
Watch the action from Boston with Demetrius Andrade vs Walter Kautondokwa, Katie Taylor vs Cindy Serrano, Tevin Farmer vs James Tennyson, with Kid Galahad, Tommy Coyle and Scott Quigg on Sunday morning, from 12am, live on Sky Sports Action.
