MIAMI – Anthony Joshua knocked out Jake Paul in the sixth round of their heavyweight bout on Friday night.
The two-time heavyweight champion showed why he is one of the sport's elite punchers when he twice dispatched a fading Paul in the fifth round.
Sensing the YouTuber was done, Joshua rocked him with a right uppercut early in the sixth round. The England native then knocked Paul down with a combination to the head.
Although Paul (12-2) got back to his feet, Joshua (29-4, 26 KOs) finally ended Paul's upset dream when he dropped him for the fourth time with a right hand to the head. Referee Christopher Young counted Paul out at 1:31 of the round in front of a crowd of 19,600 at the Kasei Center.
With this win, Joshua can now reclaim the heavyweight title he lost against Oleksandr Usyk. Joshua also spoke about his long-discussed match with compatriot and former champion Tyson Fury. However, Fury has now retired following consecutive losses to Usyk in 2024.
It was Joshua's first fight since Daniel Dubois knocked him out in five rounds in September 2024.
Joshua methodically picked up the pace against Paul from the opening round as neither fighter engaged early. Midway through the round, Paul landed a right hand that Joshua blocked with his glove. In the final seconds, Joshua scored with a right to the head near the ropes.
In the second, Joshua began to exploit his 6-inch reach advantage by landing a left jab.
Paul scored with a short right hand to the head early in the fourth. Later in the round, Paul fell awkwardly to the canvas twice, again trying to close the distance during close exchanges.
Paul weighed 216 pounds and Joshua weighed 243 pounds for this fight.
Paul, 28, who began his career in January 2020, was originally scheduled to fight lightweight champion Gervonta Davis in Miami last month. But Davis faced legal problems that forced the event to be cancelled. Paul quickly turned around and fought Joshua in the same place.
Celebrities in the crowd included champion golfer Rory McIlroy, New York Mets slugger Juan Soto, Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy and former NFL wide receivers Michael Irvin and Brandon Marshall.
On the undercard of the fight between the former UFC champions, Anderson Silva, 50, scored a second-round TKO victory against Tyron Woodley.
