A satisfying night it was for former heavyweight world champion Deontay Wilder, who returned to winning ways with a low-key comeback victory, stopping the overmatched Tyrrell Herndon in the seventh round in Kansas.

Wilder dropped his fellow American in the second round, scored another knockdown in the sixth, and closed the show with two chopping right hands a round later, prompting the referee to wave it off.

After a sad few years where he struggled for form and registered three defeats in his previous four bouts, most recently a punishing loss to Zhilei Zhang in Saudi Arabia, the wounded Wilder registered his first win since October 2022.

But while it was a dominant performance, it was far from vintage Bronze Bomber, as he struggled to get going.

Once the most feared puncher in the division and perhaps the greatest one-shot finisher of all time, the old Wilder would likely have dispatched Herndon earlier and to more fanfare.

With a sparse crowd at the Charles Koch Arena in Wichita and no major television broadcast, it was a modest setting for a fighter who once shook arenas and headlined pay-per-view events against the likes of Tyson Fury.

Gone were the diamond-encrusted masks and theatrical entrances. This was a stripped-back re-entry, but perhaps that's what Wilder needed.

"I've been laid off for a long time, getting myself back together, repairing myself emotionally. It is just nice to be back in the ring. This is a new beginning for me," the 39-year-old told the BBC.

Wilder, who recently split from long-time trainer Malik Scott, floored Herndon with a sharp counter left hook in the second round, a reminder that his timing and instincts remain dangerous as he works his way back to what he hopes is title fighting form.