Like a caged tiger set free, Tim Tszyu is vowing to emerge from lockdown in beast mode when he confronts Takeshi Inoue in his first fight in more than four months.
Tszyu will face the Japanese warrior at Sydney's Qudos Arena on November 17 after the bout was relocated from the Gold Coast because of the global pandemic.
"Look, everyone here in Sydney's been struggling for the last three months. We haven't been able to leave our house to go more than five kilometres," Tszyu said on Thursday.
"So the Sydney fans do deserve something like this. We've missed out on so much - our social lives, sporting events, all of this."
The top-ranked super middleweight and mandatory challenger to Brian Castano's WBO light-middleweight belt, Tszyu is placing his undefeated record and world-title ambitions on the line against an opponent who's only lost once.
"No risk, no reward," the Sydneysider said.
"Takeshi's going to be a tough opponent but I'm predicting I'm going to get rid of this bloke in under six rounds.
"I've been training super hard and I'm not taking no mercy. This is make it or break it, kill or be killed and I'm taking it all for all of the Sydney fans."
With bigger fish to fry, Tszyu said this could even be his fans' last chance to see him in the ring down under.
"It could be my last fight here in Australia. Who knows," he said.
"We've got such big aspirations and big goals that it could take us overseas in the next fight - and I've been pushing for that because I want to be up there at the top level.
"So I'm just looking forward to taking this Japanese bloke out and taking the world title, which is what's next."
With such high stakes, Tszyu won't be taking Inoue lightly.
"Everyone loves knockouts, everyone loves stoppages," the 26-year-old said.
"Everyone loves brutal and one-on-one fighting and that's what I bring.
"I'm not going to tip-tap. I'm not going to touch and go around, around.
"I'm going to go in for the kill and I'm going to put on a performance that people are going to be talking about for a long time."
