David Haye's attempts to unify the heavyweight division died a painful death in Hamburg on Saturday night.
The Londoner turned in an heroic performance but in the end became the latest statistic on Wladimir Klitschko's impressive slate as the WBO and IBF champion added the WBA strap with a trademark points win.
The wide decision - 117-109, 118-108, 116-110 - brought a resounding end to his reign and a miserable night in northern Germany for the thousands of Brits who braved the torrential downpour to cheer their hero on.
In truth it turned out to be a damp squib as Haye's attempts to unsettle Klitschko - including a 10-minute delay to his ring entrance - did not work. If anything they brought a more determined fighter to the ring and one who has been doing this to bigger, stronger heavyweights for years.
Haye just could not get close. He moved well all night long, largely on the outside, but came up against a champion who in the end, didn't need to do anything different.
There were times when the Brit looked like he was getting close but his attacks were wild and off-balance and became increasingly so as the fight slowly but surely slipped away.
Klitschko did what we knew he would and it worked. He jabbed and jabbed and he landed with some big rights. Haye dodged more than one but perhaps what he didn't expect was for his man to set the pace, keep coming forward. Perhaps Haye had stirred something in him with his constant taunts and trash-talking.
Even if he had won the verbal battle, he lost the war.
Haye revealed a broken toe had hampered his preparation and there is no doubt a damaged right foot would have taken away his leverage - had he got within range to land to expose the Ukrainian's suspect jaw.
He started well but there was a worrying sign when Klitschko leant him to the floor in the first. Wisely Haye went down without much resistance but all of a sudden the size of the opponent and the subsequent task in hand, were evident.
Klitschko was docked a point for leaning in the seventh but by then Haye had long been complaining to the referee Genaro Rodriguez, a sign that reality had already dawned on him. If he was hindered by his foot he was halted by a fighter in his prime.
The Ukrainian eased himself into the fight but it was in the middle stretch when he really squeezed the life out of his opponent. How ever slick Haye's movement was, every round he was caught at least once by the right, and dodged at least a couple more by the skin of his teeth.
The point deduction offered a brief glimmer of hope but Haye himself was penalised for going down and given a ludicrous standing count in the 10th when he tumbled again. It left him needing a knockout. It was a knockout that was never going to come.
