Anthony Joshua (mercifully) stops Jake Paul in sixth round of bizarre heavyweight showdown

MIAMI — Order has been restored to professional boxing. Or, at least, as much order as boxing ever has. Friday night in Miami, former unified heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua stopped Jake Paul, the YouTuber turned entrepreneur turned professional boxer, showing that fame, fortune and a following are no substitute for a lifetime dedicated to honing your craft.

So many said it was a fix. That “Fake Paul” was at it again. That there was no way the 28-year-old would step into the ring against a superhuman like Joshua in a genuine fight with all the inherent jeopardy that entails. Well, he did all that, taking a number of hefty shots from the 36-year-old Brit but ultimately coming up short, as logic said he would, with Joshua (29-4, 26 KOs) ending the fight with a big right hand in the sixth round.

THE REF HAS SEEN ENOUGH!!!

ANTHONY JOSHUA GETS THE KO AGAINST JAKE PAUL IN ROUND 6! #JakeJoshua pic.twitter.com/m5Y2VJ8to3

— Netflix Sports (@netflixsports) December 20, 2025

Before Friday, Joshua, the former WBO, WBA and IBF champion, had not entered the ring since being stopped in the fifth round by fellow British heavyweight Daniel Dubois in September 2024, the fourth defeat of his professional career. Following that loss, there have been questions about Joshua’s chin, stamina and ability to still compete at the top level of heavyweight boxing. Friday night does not answer any of those questions, but he knew that would be the case when he accepted this fight.

He took it to build his profile (and his bank balance), knowing it would introduce him to a new audience — one that knows little of Joshua the Olympic champion or even Joshua the fighter who, on his last visit to the United States, lost his world championship belts to an unfancied heavyweight in Andy Ruiz Jr. That bout, in which Ruiz sported a less-than-sculpted physique, helped convince the world and perhaps Joshua himself that he had no way of hurting the solid 6-foot-5 frame of his opponent.

Earlier this week, Joshua called that night a “tragedy” but said he now views it as part of a journey that led him to becoming a two-time world champion and ultimately to this night: “Being a headliner on Netflix.”

Some might scoff at that being something Joshua should covet, given everything he’s done in his career, but he clearly sees it as an important step in rebuilding his profile as one of the biggest names in world boxing, something that looked far from his reach this time last year.

Despite the pro-wrestling nature of the buildup and the ridiculous feel of the matchup, when the ringwalks finally started around 11:30 p.m., the arena had the feel of a big fight night, especially after a rousing rendition of the American national anthem. Joshua entered the ring first after an uncharacteristically swift entrance without any of the bells and whistles (well, fireworks and lengthy remixes) we’ve become accustomed to seeing whenever he fights, and was made to wait while Paul made his way to the ring, accompanied by a huge entourage.

6ix9ine sings as he walks with Jake Paul to the ring before his heavyweight bout against Anthony Joshua. (Ed Mulholland / Getty Images for Netflix)

The early rounds were a game of cat-and-mouse, with Paul making good use of the 22-square-foot ring to quickly move as far as possible from Joshua, who found it difficult to close the distance. At several points, Paul tried to move so fast that he tripped himself up. But it was Paul who landed the first punch, and early on he did a decent job of evading the shots coming back in his direction.

But as the rounds went on, Paul’s legs slowed and he struggled to stay on his feet. Whenever the two got into a clinch, he ended up on the canvas, looking increasingly exhausted with each round that passed. In the fourth round, a tumble ended with Joshua landing on top of Paul, with his knee in the smaller man’s midriff, leading the referee to give Paul an extended break. But it was never going to be long enough, with Joshua’s weight and superior strength telling in the fifth round as he landed some hurtful straight shots on Paul.

The American responded by sticking out his tongue in Joshua’s direction, but the impact of those punches left their mark, and it did not take long after the start of the sixth round before Paul (12-2) was back on the canvas for the final time, the referee stopping the bout with Paul clearly in no fit state to continue.

“My jaw is definitely broke,” Paul said in the ring after the bout.

Paul emerges from this fight having gained more respect from the boxing world; taking multiple shots from Joshua is not something many believed he was capable of, and few would have expected him to survive five whole rounds. He said in the ring that he will take a break now before coming back and going back down to cruiserweight.

Nakisa Bidarian, Paul’s partner in Most Valuable Promotions, said Paul “lost because of the size difference, not the skill difference.” He added that after the fight, Paul showered and drove himself to the hospital. He was later determined to have a double broken jaw, as Paul shared in an Instagram post.

For Joshua, it was perhaps not the performance he wanted. “It wasn’t the best,” he conceded in the ring. “It took a bit longer than expected. Jake Paul did well tonight; he got up time and again. You have to give him respect for trying, but he came up against a real fighter tonight who’s had a 15-month layoff. I can’t wait for 2026. If Tyson Fury is serious, stop talking and come and talk with your fists.”

Before then, there’s a rumored outing in Saudi Arabia next February for Joshua, which it’s hoped will serve as a warmup for the long-awaited bout against Fury. Whoever that fight is against, it’s unlikely to create as much discussion, debate and speculation as this one has in recent weeks, and Joshua will hope to perform more impressively than he did Friday night.

Was any of this real? It certainly felt so, even if somewhat surreal at times.