Itauma’s fifth-round knockout of Franklin felt like a special maneuver a character might perform in a video game, something so simultaneously stylish and brutal that it seemed unrealistic. For about a round’s time, Itauma had been threatening with a left uppercut, each time producing a gasp from the audience and an auditory wince from the commentary team, as if he’d produced the weapon that would end the fight and we were all now waiting to see how it would be applied. Midway through the frame, he whipped his left hand through the usually trustworthy guard of Franklin, freezing him in semi-consciousness, barely on his feet. Instinctively, Itauma wiped the table with a right cross to Franklin’s ready-and-waiting jaw, and as he did so, twirled in a perfect 360 into a checking-his-watch motion on his right wrist.

The 21-year old might have just done it because he thought it looked cool, looked the way a Fortnite character might emote, or how Shedeur Sanders might celebrate a touchdown. But perhaps he was asking the same questions the audience was at that point, pondering how long it will be until he finds competition, or more audaciously, how long until he becomes heavyweight champion.

The path plotted for Itauma to achieve heavyweight supremacy is one shorter than we’re accustomed to seeing. For several fights now, Itauma has been touted by promoters, networks and pundits alike as the future of the heavyweight division. Not just part of that future, which is generally a safe prognostication when it comes to a heavyweight prospect, but the leading figure of that future. That’s because Itauma has been speeding through the requisite checkpoints for up-and-coming heavyweights at an alarming rate. The typically durable giant Mariusz Wach? Stopped before the end of round two. Demsey McKean, fresh off nearly going the distance with Filip Hrgovic? Gone before the end of round one. The once-beaten Mike Balogun? Barely made it into the second round before being stopped. Longtime stalwart Dillian Whyte, three fights removed from a heavyweight title fight? Couldn’t get out of the starting blocks before being blown away by Itauma.

All were undeniably impressive wins, but as with all fights that take place during a buzzy prospect’s developmental phase, there were question marks surrounding all of his previous opponents. Names that were perhaps better on paper than what the physical version of them had in the tank – or left within it. Franklin should have been different, though. The Michigan native’s time on the big stage has had a particular pattern. He’s been far too good for journeymen like Devin Vargas, a step ahead of untested prospects like Ivan Dychko, and most importantly, able to keep pace with top-level heavies like Whyte and Anthony Joshua long enough to reach the finish line.

You would have been hard-pressed to find someone picking Franklin to score the upset, as he was a significant underdog on the betting lines, but there was the suggestion that he could at least take Itauma into the later rounds. This version of “step up” fight quite often plays out like this when we examine patterns in fighters’ development. The fight in which the hard-hitting prospect is no longer bailed out by their thudding power, and they’re forced to tap into their boxing ability to score a victory that produces more questions than it does additional buzz. From a marketing and development standpoint, these types of fights and outcomes are at odds with one another. The prospect doesn’t look as obviously impressive as they did in previous fights because the opposition got craftier, which gives pause to the fanbase ready to crown the future star, and ammo to those looking to doubt them. Matchmakers and trainers take this as an opportunity to gather vital information on how their fighter can improve. Promoters outwardly fall in step with the party line of it having been valuable experience for their charge, while also using it as proof that they are in the business of making competitive fights regardless of the risk, even if they might be asking themselves the same questions as the doubters internally.

There is some version of the “let’s pump the breaks” Monday morning discussion about a fighter every single week, and perhaps we were all preparing our version of it pertaining to Itauma, but he once again hasn’t given us a good reason to doubt him. Ever since he walked into the gym as a 15-year old still in his school uniform and sparred world champions like Lawrence Okolie, there has been the feeling that he’s capable of skipping grades. The pro game doesn’t always allow you to skip them entirely, you at least have to pass the test even if you weren’t there for the coursework. Itauma has aced each exam, and already has people wondering if he’s ready for his PhD, which can only come from the desk of Oleksandr Usyk.

Beating Usyk would be a historically difficult assignment, particularly for a 21-year old who turned pro the same year Usyk placed the Ring heavyweight title next to his Ring cruiserweight title on his mantlepiece in Kyiv. But the question of whether he’ll get that chance no longer seems to be if, but when?

We’ll all collectively check our watches until it’s time.