Sebastian Formella has always envisioned being part of a big welterweight fight in the United States.

The one he landed will come under far different circumstances than the one that attracted him to the scene, though nevertheless still representing the biggest stage of his career. His fight with former two-time welterweight titlist Shawn Porter also comes at a time when the odds-on favorite doesn’t always come out ahead.

“There have been a lot of upsets this year, and in the past few months,” Formella (22-0, 10KOs) noted to BoxingScene.com. “I know a lot of people don’t give me a chance to win on Saturday. Well, we just saw Cecilia Brækhus lose her welterweight championship (in a 10-round loss to Jessica McCaskill last Saturday in Tulsa, Oklahoma) and how many other fights where the underdog came out of nowhere to win.”

Formella comes in relatively unknown to stateside fans, many of whom will get their first glimpse of the 33-year old from Hamburg, Germany in his bout with Porter live from Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles (Saturday, FOX, 8:00pm ET).

The scene will also come with far less on-site fanfare—none at all, in fact—than was the case when Formella traveled to the U.S. last summer. He was just a spectator, bearing witness to Manny Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39KOs) earning a close but clear decision win over previously unbeaten Keith Thurman (29-1, 22KOs) last July in front of a packed MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

“The energy was amazing,” Formella recalled. “I remember being there and thinking what it would be like for me to perform on this same level.”

Of course, that good feeling came well ahead of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic which at one point brought the boxing scene—and much of the world—to a grinding halt. Action has since resumed, though taking place in isolated bubbles and without fans in attendance.

Those who stay ready for any opportunity—no matter the challenge—have thrived under boxing’s new look. Unbeaten titlists have fallen, as have top rated contenders and still prominent title challengers at an alarming rate since the sport has resumed full time in June.

Porter (30-3-1, 17KOs) comes in as a -1400 betting favorite according to FoxBet, as he enters his first fight since a 12-round split decision defeat to Errol Spence (26-0, 21KOs) in their Fight of the Year-level unification clash last September.

The bout ended Porter’s second title reign, both featuring one successful defense each and the latest coming at the tail end of three straight fights against top competition. Wins over Danny Garcia (to claim the title) and Yordenis Ugas (his lone title defense) preceded the loss to Spence, which came in front of 16,702 in attendance and atop a Fox Sports Pay-Per-View which generated more than 300,000 buys.

Saturday’s fight versus Formella takes place in the same town, though on a studio lot with the only fans in whatever wallpaper will come with the room and any on-site energy limited to the action in the ring and any fake crowd noise that is pumped into the Fox feed. It will be a far different look for an A-list fighter who has grown accustomed to the bells and whistles that come with a big fight night; perhaps not so much for a longshot B-side willing to fight anywhere and under any circumstances—as we’ve witnessed throughout the pandemic. 

“I am convinced that I’ve trained harder for Shawn Porter than Shawn Porter has trained for me,” insists Formella, though with a more logical reason for fancying his own chances on Saturday. “It’s different for all boxers, but maybe more different for the bigger fighters used to fighting in front of 10- or 20,000 fans. Now it’s like sparring without hard gear. It’s all silence. It’s different.

“The last two months a lot of people have lost. Nobody thinks it can happen for me. They think this is the last time they will ever hear from me. To that I say, strong mind, strong life.  Believe in yourself and you can get everything you want. It’s not the end for me, it’s the end for those who don’t believe in me.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox