That was certainly something. Fiery combinations, devastating knockdowns and a controversial finish – all squeezed into the space of three rounds. But at the end of it all, Joseph Parker marches on to 21-0 with what is comfortably his finest professional performance.

The controversy at the end has gotten a lot of focus and perhaps fair enough too. Parker had rocked Alexander Dimitrenko with a crushing left to the forehead. Dimitrenko moved in close to try take the heat out of Parker’s shots and copped a couple as he did for his troubles and dropped to a knee. Parker then smacked him in the side and Dimitrenko collapsed in a screaming heap.

The claim was that Parker hit him after a stoppage, which was true and not true. Dimitrenko was on his knee and therefore the fight should not have carried on from that stage but then the ref needs to step in and take charge if that’s the case – given what a mismatch this turned out to be, this is exactly the kind of thing referee Marlon Wright should’ve been cutting out but he continually let things slide. A shame that, because there was a little drama last time as well when the ref ended the Haumono fight when Solomon reckoned he had more to give. Both had zero impact on the result and boxing happens to be one of those sports where excuses aren’t that hard to find if you need them. No genuine boxing minds will take any notice of it.

From Parker’s point of view, it looked like pure frustration. He’d already dropped Dimi three times and he was on his way to a comprehensive knockout. A few hard jabs and, as he goes in for another brutal combo, Dimitrenko throws one punch and follows it all the way in for the clinch. This is a man over two metres tall, much taller than JP, and he wasn’t hugging him on the ropes – he was hanging off him in the middle of the ring. An arm over Parker’s shoulder, dragging him down and he suddenly sinks as Parker pops him with a swinging left to the ribs. This was meant to be a dangerous fight and yet Parker had obliterated him. Dimitrenko was left clinging to silly antics and Parker probably lost his cool there. If it hadn’t been a final stoppage then the ref would have likely warned him and all would be forgotten – but it was, so Dimitrenko is talking up a protest. Expect nothing more of it.

But just quietly, it was a needless punch in a fight he was comfortably winning. What’s the point of giving the ref the chance to swing that fight around in the only way he was ever gonna lose it from there? Inexperience and slightly questionable discipline. It’s a pity it had to end that way. A pity for a few different reasons and Parker is not blameless in that.

Oh, Big Dimi definitely made the most of it. He was writhing in absolute agony like he’d just had the ending of Breaking Bad spoiled before he could finish the series (a spaceship arrives and takes Walter White back to his home planet). Clearly he was playing up the hit to draw attention and in the end he succeeded only really in looking like a muppet. Still, before you start making fun of him for being a cry baby, consider what an unguarded, full-force Joseph Parker right-hand-thump to the rib cage would feel like. Yeah, ouch. Dimitrenko will probably look back on that reaction and feel a little embarrassed but he was driven to embarrassment by the humiliation of the previous two and a half rounds.

Alexander Dimitrenko was supposed to be the toughest test yet for Parker, however any fears of a contest were thrown out the window midway through the first round when Parker backed him into a corner and threw a punishing rally, highlighted by a left upper cut right in the kisser that left the bloke stumbling forward to wrap him up and instead just stumbling over. Dimitrenko tried to argue that Parker had pushed him and the ref wanted none of it.

The towering Ukrainian/German/Russian was always something of an unknown factor. 38-2 before this bout, though having fought in Germany most of his career he’s not a guy who has a major name in the heavyweight division. More like a bloke who’s lived on the fringes – except every time he’s stepped up to take on a genuinely noticeable fight (Eddie Chambers and Kubrat Pulev, basically) he’s been beaten and not too many of his wins have come against relevant fighters. Like, Derric Rossy anyone? Timo Hoffman?

Anyway, his height and reach advantages made him an even more unknown prospect for Parker who himself can only really brag about one win: the one against Carlos Takam. Dimitrenko’s a very different prospect than Takam… and maybe not the one that his record and reputation led us to believe.

Frankly, he didn’t even look like he was there to fight. There was no thought of toughing it out once Parker got on top, he instead stooped to gamesmanship and cynicism. That’s been a criticism of his in the past – there are some that claim he quit too easily in the Pulev fight and this fight didn’t exactly help those character doubts. Generally a taller fighter has an advantage because they can dominate the distance between the fighters. Dimitrenko’s jab was both rare and also soft. He couldn’t boss a damn thing despite an 18cm reach advantage and Parker was in control from the very start.

Joe countered that size difference with his quickness and it’s well known that Parker has some genuine speed. This, however, was top notch. This was speed that might ruffle Anthony Joshua. His footwork was supreme and he used that to hover at a safe distance and then really launch himself into his jabs, particularly the double left. It was impressive stuff. Dimitrenko was way too slow to protect himself from it and Parker never let up once the first drop of blood hit the water. Too fast, too strong… too bloody good, mate. When he’s beaten punching bags in the past he’s done it by taking his time and working on the technical things. Here he was fully unleashed for the first time ever and it was wonderful to see.

If we’re being completely honest then Dimitrenko was something close to pathetic. The guy’s got the balance of Bambi on ice, he was constantly tripping over his own feet. Up against the footwork of Parker it was no contest. He was decked in the first round, decked twice in the second round and that knee in the fourth is technically a knockdown as well.

Having said that, Parker made him look worse than he is. Perhaps the claim that Dimitrenko is a bigger scalp than Takam now gets put in different context (definitely Takam’s style was more of a test for Parker) though it ain’t Joe’s fault that the fella got on the plane without bothering to pack his mental game in his suitcase. A less aggressive, more patient fighter he could potentially give real trouble to but Joe smoked him in a performance of fast hands, clever approach and a bit of power in there too. He couldn’t have done any more.

And suddenly now the chat out of the Parker Camp is of a world title fight. Not just down the road either but the next time he steps into a ring.

Big call, that. If anything, the events of the last few weeks might have convinced them to wait a little longer – particularly if they can’t get Anthony Joshua. Tyson Fury is probably gonna lose his belts which opens up a shot at one of those and it also opens up Wladimir Klitschko. What was good about the Fury Farce Train was that he seemed to be taking care of the final years of Klitschko’s legendary career. The dude’s 40 right now and has too much sense to keep battling away beyond his best, meaning the likes of AJ and JP could hold back and when the great Ukrainian was done, emerge from the shadows to try dominate the division.

That might not be possible for Parker any longer and part of the reason for fighting Dimitrenko was to get some experience against a taller man like Klitschko is. Right now it seems more likely than not that Klitschko and Joshua get the November 26 bout that Eddie Hearn, Joshua’s promoter, has banked away. Parker’s lot will remain in discussions just in case though there’s no indication that Fury will be back any time soon (if ever) and Klitschko is ready to go right now. A meeting with Anthony Joshua makes plenty of sense for Wlad: world title(s) on the line, massive promotional value and a chance to lay down the hurt on the current shining light of the next generation of heavyweight boxing.

Which could leave Parker scrapping with Andy Ruiz for a vacant belt. That wouldn’t be the ideal bout, no kidding there, yet if Hearn gets Klitschko-Joshua over the line then that’s all Parker would be left with if they’re that committed to getting a world title belt by the end of the year. Joseph’s a top ranked challenger in both the IBF (Joshua’s belt) and WBO ranks. Ruiz is third in the WBO behind Klitschko. That fight depends entirely on Fury losing his belts and Klitschko agreeing to fight Joshua. Honestly, if Klitschko were to take a Parker fight with Joshua also on the line then that’d be rather insane, so that much should be safe. Why fight the challenger when you can fight the champ? Keep in mind that WK-AJ could also be dependent on those vacant belts being put up for grabs by the organisations.

Ruiz is a bit of a slugger who Parker can probably beat easy by staying honest. A more entertaining fight would be a Povetkin, Pulev or Wilder but it’s unlikely we get anything like that – if Parker’s gonna take a risk then it may as well be for a belt. Dan Raphael, the championship belt holder of world boxing journalism, spoke briefly in an ESPN live chat about Ruiz vs Parker. Sounds like a bluff bout, to be honest.

“It's been written about and discussed in the New Zealand media but I have my doubts. They were talking like it was done and Top Rank has never even been contacted by Parker's people. I very much doubt it will happen.”

As much sense as it makes for Wlad and the shared promoters (which matters because there’s an HBO-Showtime clash in there too to overcome), Joshua vs Klitschko would be a crazy risk as far as AJ goes. He’s got a CV every bit as limited as Parker’s – arguably weaker – and now is supposed to step up and take on one of the modern greats? Bro, good luck with that. A consolidatory bout with Parker might be best for both parties… of course, that’d be assuming that money has nothing to do with it and Eddie Hearn is a thirsty individual.

All of which goes to show that with heavyweight boxing in a bit of a wild state right now, Parker is reliant on the decisions of others to determine what he does next. His latest win has given him options. Those options aren’t enough to give him leverage. Both sides have spilt enough words on the budding rivalry for anyone to doubt that Parker vs Joshua is something everyone wants to see happen so if it weren’t for Fury’s latest madness then you could almost lock it in. But no, he had to keep on being Tyson Fury and now we play the waiting game.