Anthony Joshua remains on course for a showdown with British heavyweight rival Tyson Fury later this year after recovering from being knocked down inside 20 seconds to secure a second-round knockout of Kristian Prenga in a wild clash in Jeddah.
Joshua endured a dismal first three minutes on Saturday night, hitting the canvas twice, firstly from a vicious uppercut, with the Albanian knockout specialist eyeing a seismic shock.
However, Prenga was demolished by right hands soon after in AJ's first outing since he was a passenger in a car crash in December that killed friends Sina Ghami and Latif 'Latz' Ayodele.
An emotional Joshua dedicated his win to his late team members, saying: "It's more than punch power. That was spirit, that was Latz, that was Sina, that was the families. It hurts to even talk about it. It has been tough. It's my brothers. I don't want to talk about it."
Fury had , over Polish veteran Mariusz Wach in a non-televised bout fought in front of a small crowd in Thailand, , who he could now box in November.
There was no sign of Fury as Joshua overcame a boxer in Prenga who had recorded each of his 20 victories via knockout and won his previous 16 contests since a first career defeat in February 2017.
Prenga's stats made for strong reading and although there were no huge names on his CV he threatened a stunning result - one that could have shattered hopes of Joshua facing Fury - before the Brit registered his 30th win in 34 fights and second in a row, having beaten Jake Paul last year weeks before his car crash.
After a hiccup-free weekend for Fury and Joshua coming through early adversity, a long-awaited all-British scrap looks set to happen in the autumn, with contracts already signed.
It could possibly be staged at 2am UK time at Wembley Stadium to suit a global audience but for fight organiser Turki Alalshikh.
If and when this clash does take place - - boxing fans will get what they have wanted for years and, at various points, doubted they would ever see.
Fears of Joshua suffering a fifth pro defeat, after two losses to Oleksandr Usyk - the same as Fury - and one each to Daniel Dubois and Andy Ruiz, were rampant after his shocking start against Prenga but his flurry of heavy blows in the second round earned him victory.
On Fury, Joshua added: "I am going to rip his heart out. I am the meanest and most vicious champion there has ever been!
"All jokes aside, I respect everything he has done and achieved but we are here now. I hope the fans will be in for a lovely treat."
Joshua also reserved praise for Prenga, saying: "He's a strong guy and I think Eddie [Hearn] wants to sign him now!
"He is going to do well and has a bright future. Maybe with a bit more experience, he will be up there with the rest of us.
"He is strong and durable and gave me a good test but this is what champions do, we rise. We get knocked down and stand up. That's life."
Watch Edgar Berlanga vs Steven Butler and Richardson Hitchins vs Ricardo Salas live on Your Site Action and Your Site Main Event from 10pm Sunday.
