16 months have passed since Anthony Joshua last fought in Saudi Arabia, cutting a disconsolate figure in the wake of a second straight loss to Oleksandr Usyk.
The rebuild has been slow and occasionally painful. Having taken eight months out of the ring, against Jermaine Franklin he was unconvincing.
Come August, he got the knockout win against Robert Helenius and yet it was a result that left more questions than answers.
Otto Wallin has suggested, like others, that Joshua has lost that previous cloak of invincibility, a throwback to his shock loss to Andy Ruiz Jr in the pair’s first fight.
“He’s scared of losing, getting knocked out again,” said Joshua’s opponent in Riyadh on Saturday night. “I think that’s a big problem for him.”
Joshua has talked about the fact that winning is all that matters and yet he will be acutely aware that nothing other than an explosive knockout will silence the doubters and critics.
Joshua is the clear favourite but Wallin is no slouch, having left Tyson Fury with a cut which briefly threatened to produce a major heavyweight upset.
The so-called 'Day of Reckoning' in Saudi Arabia is the precursor to what should be an enormous year for heavyweight boxing and also for the kingdom’s bid to tighten its ever-increasing grip on the global sports calendar.
For all the calibre of fighters on this card from Joshua to Deontay Wilder and Joseph Parker, and Daniel Dubois to Dmitry Bivol, it remains notable for the fights it lacks.
The heavyweight division desperately needs fights between Joshua and Wilder, as well as Fury and Usyk. Both are expected to be announced after Christmas, the former for March, the latter in February.
With Parker and Wallin both bidding for upsets to deny Wilder and Joshua respectively shots at their double-header, there remains a risk of derailing this Anglo-American showdown which has been a long time in the offing.
If both are victorious, Joshua-Wilder looks likely to get the go-ahead with the only slight caveat being Joshua’s obsession with being a three-time champion and the IBF belt set to be vacant and likely decided between Joshua and Filip Hrgovic.
With no disrespect to the Croat, such a fight would merely feel like yet more stalling. Joshua has not risen to Wallin’s barbs throughout the week, insisting he is super relaxed, but he has been tetchy at points.
But he did at least admit to having had “a little dip” in his career from which he now believes he has dug himself out.
“Sometimes when you get knocked off your pedestal, people find it hard to get back up, let alone get back on course,” he said.
Joshua appears to have gone through that journey. The figures in his corner have changed from Robert Garcia to Derrick James to now Ben Davison, the man who helped extricate Fury from the doldrums.
To some, it smacks of a sense of panic and a desperation to find answers to his shortcomings. To Joshua, it is simply a sensible approach to be guided by a man who helped Fury topple Wallin.
The heavyweight division and wider boxing world waits with bated breath for what sort of Joshua lies in store between the ropes on Saturday night. He needs to put on the sort of show he has promised so much in recent times without truly delivering.
Anthony Joshua v Otto Wallin is live on DAZN
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