Oleksandr Usyk made quite an understatement Saturday night in London just three weeks after reconfirming himself as boxing’s best heavyweight.

When the predictably curt Usyk reached the stage to accept a token of the boxing world’s appreciation at Old Royal Naval College in London, Usyk uttered just a few words in the way only the sport’s undefeated, unified heavyweight champion can deliver.

“This nine round was great,” Usyk told the capacity crowd during The Ring’s inaugural awards gala. “Thank you so much.”

We’re the ones, of course, that owe Usyk and Tyson Fury a debt of gratitude for the drama they provided during the ninth round of their first fight May 18 at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Though six inches shorter and almost 40 pounds lighter than the 6-foot-9, 262-pound Fury, it was Usyk who hurt Fury badly and came close to scoring a knockout during that unforgettable ninth round.

A left hand by Usyk buzzed Fury, whose back was against the ropes when he took that punishing punch with about 30 seconds on the clock in the ninth round. Usyk landed various punches thereafter and eventually knocked a stumbling Fury near a corner, where the ropes held him up and scored a knockdown for the former fully unified cruiserweight champion.

Referee Mark Nelson never seemed close to stopping their scheduled 12-round fight for The Ring, IBF, IBO, WBA, WBC and WBO belts during that controversial sequence. Fury (34-2-1, 24 KOs) recovered rather quickly and made their contest competitive in the championship rounds.

The former WBC champ nevertheless lost a split decision, which made Ukraine’s Usyk (23-0, 14 KOs) the first fully unified heavyweight champ of boxing’s four-belt era. Usyk also won their immediate rematch slightly more convincingly, by unanimous decision, on December 21 at Kingdom Arena.