Anthony Joshua knocked out Jake Paul in the sixth round of what critics said was a "crazy” boxing mismatch on Friday night.
The two-times heavyweight champion dropped the fading Paul twice in the fifth round.
After a slow start, Joshua landed a clean right hand to Paul's jaw that ended the fight with a knockout.
“It took a little bit longer than expected but the right hand finally found its destination,” the 36-year-old boxer said.
"Jake Paul’s done really well tonight. I’m going to give him his props. He got up time and time again. I give Jake the respect for trying and trying. He came up against a real fighter tonight.”
Paul, meanwhile, said he was satisfied with his performance.
"That was fun. I gave it my all,” Paul said. "I had a blast. I think my jaw is broken, by the way. But Anthony's one of the best to ever do it so I'm gonna come back and get a world championship.
"I just got tired, to be honest – like it was so much handling his weight. I think with better cardio I could have kept it up and kept on fighting. But he hits really hard.”
There was also a weight discrepancy, which critics of the match pointed out before the match. Paul weighed 216 pounds and Joshua weighed 243 for the bout.
Friday's made-for-streaming contest, just over a year after Paul fought 58-year-old Mike Tyson in a much-derided Netflix match, had been widely panned throughout boxing, with many warning that Paul risked serious injury.
It was Joshua’s first bout since Daniel Dubois knocked him out in five rounds in September 2024.
With the victory, Joshua can move to reclaim the heavyweight title he lost against Oleksandr Usyk. Joshua has also talked about a match with countryman and former champion Tyson Fury.
However, Fury has retired following consecutive losses to Usyk in 2024.
– with agencies
