After the prolonged period of dominance of Wladimir Klitschko, boxing's largest class has seen the emergence of several talented and entertaining contenders, including New Zealand's first ever world champion Joseph Parker, troubled Klitschko killer Tyson Fury and KO artists Deontay Wilder and Luis Ortiz.
But the man with the potential to surpass them all - both in the ring and out of it - is undoubtedly British champion Anthony Joshua.
The 2012 London Olympics gold medal winner has raced to an 18-0 record since turning pro less than 40 months ago and defended the IBF strap vacated by Fury for the second time on the weekend with a third round stoppage of Eric Molina.
But that only goes part of the way to revealing why former British heavyweight contender Scott Welch this week predicted the 27-year-old would surpass Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather and become the first billionaire fighter in history.
PURE KNOCKOUT POWER
The likes of Sonny Liston, George Foreman and, more than any other heavyweight, Tyson connected with audiences because of the pure savagery they brought to the ring.
Joshua is cut from a similar cloth. It's hard to remember a more physically-impressive fighter than the 198cm, 110kg Brit.
Joshua looks like he was carved from granite and while the likes of Fury will tell you those muscles aren't particularly useful in the ring, Joshua draws admiring eyes from both men and women because of his imposing physique.
Fight fans want their heavyweight champ to have the muscles of their favourite cartoon superhero but the menace of their favourite villain. Joshua might not have the unnerving look of Tyson but every rival he's faced to this point (outside of perhaps Dillian Whyte) appears to have been intimidated by his size.
It's resulted in 18 knockout finishes from his 18 fights - just one short of matching the KO streak Tyson started his career with.
TALKING A GOOD GAME
Knockout power is one thing, but generally a fighter needs at least one other string to his bow to become a true crossover star.
Mayweather, and at a local level Anthony Mundine, sold tickets because they deliberately generated hatred from their audience, prompting people to pay to watch them fight in the hope they'd lose.
Tyson and other car crash fighters like Fury, Ricardo Mayorga and Dereck Chisora drew eyeballs through pure insanity. Bite someone's ear off. Go to jail. Throw a table. Whatever it takes to get people talking - and watching.
Another way is verbal warfare. As Muhammad Ali and more recently Conor McGregor have rammed home, the gift of the gab can take you a long way with fans.
Joshua might not belittle his opponents in the same way as "The Greatest" or "The Notorious", but he's well-spoken and knows how to sell a fight.
"What Anthony does in the ring, that's key," Joshua's publicist Andy Bell told The Telegraph. "(But) also his personality. You can't replicate that. It's once in a lifetime, to be honest."
As his career develops and his wins pile up, Joshua will become more confident with microphone in hand and only grow in this area. He'll need to, because simply stringing victories together isn't enough - as Klitschko learnt during a sustained period of success in which he never really made it in America. And that's where the big money is.
IS ONE BILLION DOLLARS ACHIEVABLE?
Welch insists Joshua will be the first billionaire fighter. "I really do believe that," he told The Telegraph. "Floyd Mayweather earned $500 or $600m, Mike Tyson earned $300-odd million, 20 or 30 years ago. This guy, as a heavyweight, has got the potential to be the first billionaire fighter. He's going to rule for the next eight or nine years. Within six months to a year he'll be unbeatable."
Molina's manager, Lee Holliday, backed up the theory that if Joshua stays fit and boxes for his target five more years - fitting in two fights per annum - he will have a billion in the bank.
But are 10 figures a realistic aim? At this early stage of his career Joshua's personal fortune is estimated at around $15 to $20 million.
Joshua's promoter, Eddie Hearn, has done a commendable job of building his career to this point - but that still leaves the vast majority of a billion dollars left to earn.
He's expected to earn upwards of $60 million for the next fight on his schedule - an April date against former champ Klitschko at Wembley Stadium. Hearn is aiming to pack in 90,000 fans and has already struck a deal with American broadcaster Showtime to show AJ's fights.
A fight against Klitschko is probably the biggest fight Joshua can make right now and will catapult him to a level of stardom he's never experienced.
If he can start pulling in $60 to $100 million per fight - no easy task because it will depend on factors outside his control like finding interesting opponents and networks with the finance to put up big offers - he'd still likely need to fight another dozen times, preferably without losing, certainly in the short-term, to meet Welch's prediction.
Fights with Fury, Wilder, Parker, Ortiz and headline-grabber David Haye appear viable options in the next few years - and other opponents will emerge.
If Joshua can start mowing through them - and generate the odd controversy outside of the ring - who knows where his ceiling is? Boxing fans should be hoping it's sky-high.
