When the world’s fastest animal gets a hold of its prey there is usually no escape.
But this defiant gazelle refused to give up hope and made a flight for freedom after it looked certain to become a cheetah’s dinner.
A dramatic video and stunning images capture the clash between the pair on the plains of Ndutu in Tanzania.
Dinner time: The amazing moment a cheetah pounces on a gazelle on the plains of Ndutu in Tanzania
No escape? The speedy cat claws the antelope and drags it on to the ground where surely it cannot escape
The footage shows that the lightening fast cat had stalked the gazelle before it pounced and tried to drag the animal to the ground.
The cheetah gripped the antelope tightly round the neck and clawed a big hole below the animal’s shoulder.
But the quick sprinter had met its match and the gazelle bravely fought for its life.
It kicked the cat with the full force of its legs and dashed away as the cheetah was unable to hold on.
The cheetah was forced to look for another meal for dinner, having bitten off more than it could chew.
Photographer Wim Van Den Heever from Pretoria, South Africa, captured the encounter.
Never give up: But the defiant Grant’s gazelle kicks out against the cheetah and makes a flight for freedom
Battle in the bush: The quick sprinter had clearly met its match and the gazelle bravely fights for its life
The 43-year-old said he was looking for cheetah roaming the short grass plains during the calving season in Africa.
Wim, who was leading a photographic safari, said: ‘At one stage the cheetah had the gazelle on the ground and I thought he had no chance, but the Grant’s recovered.
‘We stayed with the cheetah for a while, he was tired and worn out and he eventually lay down to rest.
Lucky escape: The courageous antelope runs off forcing the cheetah to search for another meal to hunt down
What a spot: Photographer Wim Van Den Heever, 43, from Pretoria in South Africa, captured the encounter
‘The gazelle on the other hand was running for his life, it looked like he would never stop running. He is probably past Brazil by now.’
He added: ‘Cheetahs usually hunt in a coalition when hunting for prey this size, but this male was young and inexperienced and took on a gazelle that was too big for him to bring down.’
‘I have always dreamt about seeing a cheetah taking on a bigger prey, because photographing this kind of action is what us wildlife photographers look for wherever we go.
‘That Grant’s gazelle could have killed the cheetah, it was a life and death battle between two species.
‘It is a scene I have been looking for my whole life and I will keep looking for this kind of thing, but it took me 43 years to find it. It is pretty rare.’