Deontay Wilder earned his sixth consecutive knockout with a brutal first round stoppage of Bermane Stiverne on Saturday night.
The bout, which took place at the Barclays Center in New York, was a repeat of the meeting in 2015, where Stiverne became the only man to take Wilder to points, though he lost via unanimous decision.
However, the 'Bronze Bomber' made sure of a completely different outcome with chilling power, knocking his opponent down three times before the referee stopped the contest.
Using sheer power and little technique, the champion completely overawed Stiverne, who was out of shape and didn't look like he wanted to be there for one moment.
It moves Wilder's record to 39-0 with 38 knockouts, as he successfully defended his WBC title for the sixth time.
That victory should have cleared the path for a unification bout with Anthony Joshua, who defended his IBF and WBA titles with a controversial 10th-round stoppage of Carlos Takam in Cardiff just over a week ago.
Despite talks between both camps, it appears that no deal is close to being arranged to see the two meet.
Instead, 'Bronze Bomber' may face a new WBC mandatory challenger - which is not something boxing fans from around the globe want to hear.
Dominic Breazeale, who was knocked out by Joshua in 2016, now has the right to a shot at the world title after he stopped Eric Molina in the eighth round on Wilder's undercard, taking his record to 19-1.
The bout was an eliminator for the mandatory position, and should Wilder wish to face Joshua or any other fighter, he must get a reprieve from the WBC.
After his win over Stiverne, the Alabama fighter called out AJ and labelled Dillian Whyte a "peasant", which gave fans hope of a super-fight in 2018.
However, that optimism seems to be quickly diminishing, as Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn's plan to have Wilder fight Whyte first not at all appealing to the American.
Wilder is adamant that he is not even remotely interested in fighting Whyte, and is set on a contest with the unbeaten Joshua.
Hearn did reveal that he had spoken to his fighter about the prospect of a unification bout, and received a positive response, shall we say.
"I think 2018, we want to see Deontay Wilder against Anthony Joshua, no question," Hearn stated.
"I was really interested to see the weight of Deontay Wilder on the scales, 15st 9lbs. I texted that to Anthony today, Deontay Wilder, 15st 9lbs.
"I shouldn’t really tell you the reply, but it was "I’ll eat him," and the size difference is huge. It’s two-and-a-half stone now between those two."
Boxing fans from all over will certainly have their fingers crossed that a deal can be agreed to see this happen next year.