After more than three years in absentia David Haye took less than three minutes to start his comeback.
Australian pretender Mark De Mori will return to his second home in Croatia, soon to be forgotten.
Still, Have did the job.
Not a very difficult job, it has to be said, but one that needed doing as quickly and emphatically as possible if London’s former world heavyweight champion is to regain one of those titles.
An astonishingly large crowd for such an uncompetitive event – reportedly 16,000 in the O2 Arena – rose to salute Haye as a returning hero.
They believe.
Boxing itself will need to be convinced by victories harder-earned over tougher opponents.
This brief stanza – just two minutes and 11 seconds of the first round before De Mori subsided to the canvas and decided to stay there – did offer some nostalgic glimpses of Haye’s speed and power.
He went for apprehensive Aussie from the first bell, throwing punches in brief clusters.
When the old Hayemaker was detonated De Mori headed south – helped downwards by a couple more glancing blows – and waited for referee Paul Williams to perform the concluding rites.
It was enough to suggest that Haye can be a danger in a fractured heavyweight division, if not sufficient as yet to convince the watching world that he is sure to be a champion again, at 35.
So what next?
Not Tyson Fury: ‘He’s got to go to Germany for his rematch with Wladimir Klitschko.’
Not Anthony Joshua, well not just yet: ‘This could be a huge stadium fight later this year.’
Before that, Haye will sift through the heavyweight ranks for another, hopefully tougher opponent against whom to flex muscles rebuilt to the heaviest e of his career at 16st 3lb.
He adds: ‘I’m serious about climbing back to the top of this heavyweight division.’
At the very least, it should be a fun ride.