Callum Smith will not allow sentiment to cloud his first world title defence in Madison Square Garden on Saturday night.
Liverpool's WBA super-middleweight champion will walk out at boxing's most iconic venue to face a foe he and his brothers are more than familiar with.
Hassan N'Dam N'jkam is a Cameroon-born Frenchman who as a former WBO world champion at middleweight has shared a ring with three of the famous Smith siblings.
"Paul sparred him years ago," said Callum this week "I sparred him when he was world champion, Liam went over to San Francisco to spar with him when he was fighting David Lemieux.
"We know him well and I like him ... but when the bell goes I'll be in there to take his head off."
Callum has waited a long time for his first ring walk as a world champion.
It was September last year when he clinically ended George Groves' reign as world champion - and his professional career - to win the World Boxing Super Series in King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah.
But if that venue was an unusual stage on which to become crowned world champion - Madison Square Garden is a fitting arena in which to defend it.
"That's why I'm here," said Callum this week. "There were other shows I could possibly have boxed on but I decided to wait for Madison Square Garden. It's definitely a box ticked."
The next box to be ticked is to become undisputed super-middleweight champion of the world.
Callum is widely regarded as the No.1 in the world at 168 pounds, but USA's Anthony Dirrell holds the WBC belt, Caleb Plant the IBF version and Britain's Billy Joe Saunders won the WBO belt a fortnight ago.
Smith is happy to take on all-comers.
"Ideally I'd like to achieve as much as I can at 168 and then move up to 175," he said.
"Hopefully if I can get the fights I want then I can win as many titles as I can at 168.
"Billy Joe Saunders holds a version of the title (WBO) and to be undisputed is a dream, so to be undisputed I'd have to take the WBO title. He's got it so it definitely makes sense."
But Smith is also not refusing to rule out a showdown with the most recent addition to the super-middleweight ranks, pound for pound king Canelo Alvarez, while he could even be forced into another domestic showdown with mandatory WBA challenger John Ryder.
"I'd fight Canelo," he said. "I think it's a tougher fight than Gennady Golovkin but he's the bigger name. He's the face of boxing at the minute and I think that's the fight everyone in and around that weight division dreams of.
"It's definitely a possibility as long as I keep winning.
"But it could be out of my hands. John Ryder is a mandatory and I'd have to take that to keep my title, but ideally I'd be looking at unification.
"I've been in boxing long enough to know that mandatory is there for a reason but if it's called, it's a fight I would take."
But first Callum has to get past N'Dam.
The Frenchman has only lost three of his 40 pro contests and been stopped just once, by Ryota Murata in 2017.
But he is a natural middleweight, while Callum is a big super-middle.
The Scouser is hoping to make a bold statement - but he is aware that with Anthony Joshua topping the bill against Andy Ruiz junior he may struggle to claim the headlines.
"It's going to be tough. Everyone on the undercard is going to be looking to get a win and look good doing it. But that's the most important thing. As long as I win and I put in a good performance, maybe I'll steal the headlines.
"But with AJ topping the bill it's going to be tough."
