For years, Francis Ngannouc has been viewed as the UFC's up-and-coming superstar name, the man that is capable of touching the corners of the Earth in a way that only Conor McGregor has done before him.
On Saturday night, Ngannou's journey with the UFC could be over, lightyears before his heavyweight reign truly started.
Ngannou and the UFC have been locked in a contract standoff for some time. His victory over Stipe Miocic last March was the seventh of an eight-fight agreement, meaning that his clash with Ciryl Gane this weekend is his final bout at this stage.
Francis Ngannou's journey with the UFC could be over after his heavyweight fight at UFC 270
There appears to be no sign of a new deal being struck, with Ngannou last week publicly stating that he feels he has been 'wrongly treated' and now needs to be paid his worth.
'No, I will not fight for $500,000, $600,000 any more,' he told ESPN.
'I mean, it's over. It's over. I just did this. I took this fight for a personal reason, and I want to make sure that regardless, even if it's unfair, I have been wrongly treated, I can make my case to say I have completed the eight fights. But no.
He added: 'The reason why I'm here is because I earned it. Nobody has given me anything.
'So I don't know what's going to happen tomorrow, but I'm sure I will make it. I will keep making it.
Ngannou, 35, is entering the final fight on his eight-bout deal with the MMA organisation
Ngannou (R) and his team are locked in talks with the UFC and Dana White (L) over a deal
'I want to win this fight, but if I lost, it's fine. I don't think that takes anything out of me as a man. I have done a lot as a man.
'Even if this was the end, well, I'll say I did it. Not many people in their lifetime, even those who have better opportunities than I, can tell the same story as me. I'm happy where I am.'
What Ngannou wants is no secret. The Cameroonian, 35, has regularly expressed his desire to fulfil a life-long ambition and one day step in the boxing ring.
It has been reported that, during negotiations with the UFC, Ngannou has demanded a contractual provision that would permit him to compete in boxing bouts, outside of the UFC.
Unsurprisingly, that request has been met with resistance, and UFC chief Dana White has said that Ngannou is free to leave 'if he doesn't want to be with us', and suggested that the Cameroonian is being poorly advised.
The 35-year-old would like the flexibility to be able to box while contracted with the UFC
'Look, if you want to be with us, we'd love to have you. If you don't want to be with us, no problem. It's all good,' he told ESPN.
'I think his contract, and this is off the top of my head, if he wins he still has time with us after this fight. He'd probably have one more fight.
'These things happen. Sometimes you don't always come to terms with people.
'When you're a fighter, you have to be careful who represents you. I don't think he's had the best representation.'
So what happens next? Well, as things stand, Ngannou's future is highly dependent on the outcome of his fight this weekend against Gane.
White, however, has been reluctant to grant permission and allow Ngannou to enter boxing
