Anthony Joshua, George Groves and Chris Eubank Jr enjoyed contrasting victories at The O2, so let's take stock of what was learned.
Patience pays off
Anthony Joshua is used to winning in spectacular style in double-quick time. He was expected to do so again when he faced Dominic Breazeale, but the night didn't pan out as many had predicted. The gulf in speed was immediately apparent but it quickly emerged that Breazeale could take a shot.
That realisation could have sent Joshua two ways. His initial instinct must have been to yield to his ego and try to load up with bombs in an attempt to teach his visitor a lesson in English manners, so what was most impressive about the champion was that he resisted that temptation and instead boxed methodically; systematically breaking Breazeale down before administering the trademark finish.
Joshua had to prove little by way of defence but the way in which he chose his shots and the discipline he kept in the face of what must surely have been inward frustration is a sign of growing maturity - perhaps a lesson learned from the brutal clash with Dillian Whyte.
No light Breaze
They said he would be treated with the same disdain with which Joshua treated Charles Martin, who handed over the IBF world heavyweight crown having been hopelessly outgunned inside two rounds back in April. The bookmakers took countless bets on Joshua winning inside three rounds and they took them at almost prohibitively short odds.
Breazeale, though, was not going to read from that script. In the build-up to the fight, he'd voiced embarrassment at Martin's performance and promised Joshua that he would present a threat far beyond comparison. In some ways, he was wrong because he never really 'threatened' to relieve his opponent of his world title... but that is some chin Breazeale showed.
Joshua's speed and natural athleticism was just far, far too much for Breazeale and he spent much of the fight as a sitting duck; most regularly to the champion's jab and short left-hooks. With his right eye swollen shut from the opening few rounds, he soldiered on and refused to go down until the seventh. He even got up...
Eubank Jr heads for the top
What's so extraordinary about Chris Eubank Jr is that we've yet to really see him box for a prolonged period of time. The Brighton man has been so clearly his recent opponents' physical superior that he's not really had to. And what's more, given that his style leads to the exchange of clean-landing punches, it's clearly a chin of some sturdiness.
Tom Doran was a viable challenger and deserved to be there. Unbeaten and with developing power, his camp were quietly confident of pulling off an upset. The Eubank camp, meanwhile, were loudly confident of dethroning Gennady Golovkin. After seeing the British middleweight title defended in such brutal style, you can almost begin to believe it yourself.
Whether the Eubanks' style puts you off or turns you on, they are the definition of 'box office'. Eubank Jr even started a chin-dangling dance midway through one round. Harsh on Doran that may have been but it's the sort of brashness that sets tongues a-wagging. It's tough to know what to say about the way he fights, but it's certainly fighting.
Groves grinds it out
His engine and his chin were the subject of much criticism in the build-up to this fight. His stoppage defeats to Carl Froch prove that George Groves is useless late on in a fight, claimed his detractors. They were proved fairly emphatically wrong by the Hammersmith super-middleweight.
Whether it's a change of trainer, a change of attitude or the stark realisation that facing Martin Murray was all-or-nothing in terms of preserving world title ambitions, Groves pulled it out of the bag.
There were times of concern - his tendency to fire back when stepping off may not be advisable but has always guaranteed entertainment - but in general, he was clinical.
Murray deserves a mention, too, of course. Many onlookers felt he should have been pulled out after withstanding some heavy punishment in the middle rounds but he came back in typically determined fashion, launching several late assaults as he grimly tried to cling to his dream.
All Whyte now
Not many people will remember the night for the return of Dillian Whyte but it may prove a turning point for the Brixton heavyweight. Returning from shoulder surgery, having been off since his dramatic British title fight with Joshua last December, 'The Bodysnatcher' faced the most awkward of opponents in Ivica Bacurin.
What's refreshing about Whyte is his honesty. During the fight, immediately after the stoppage and even in the post-fight interview he made no effort to disguise the fact that he was frustrated with himself for not being able to land clean on the elusive Croatian. The positive thing for him and his new trainer Mark Tibbs was that he sought to counteract that frustration.
Yes, there were a hatful of shots he threw and missed with. Yes, his timing was nowhere to be seen at times. Yes, his opponent was really a cruiserweight... but if Whyte can climb to where he has the potential to, tonight may be remembered as an unspectacular but crucial step in his career.