'Talk with your fists': Long-awaited Anthony Joshua blockbuster on the cards after 'putrid' Jake Paul fight

Anthony Joshua stopped Jake Paul in the sixth round of their heavyweight clash and his attention has immediately turned to a blockbuster 2026 fight.

The two-time world champion stepped into the ring with the polarising YouTuber-turned-boxer and looked visibly frustrated as the rounds ticked by.

Joshua appeared uncharacteristically hesitant early, struggling to cut off the ring and reluctant to commit to the power shots many expected would end the fight.

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Paul attempted to grapple with Joshua whenever the British star applied pressure, creating a disjointed rhythm that tested the crowd's patience. There were moments where it looked like a clean knockout wasn't going to happen.

"The numbers are putrid ... this is just bowling shoe ugly," lead commentator Mauro Ranallo said on Netflix.

At one stage, the referee even called both fighters to centre ring and told them, "The fans didn't pay to see this crap" as the Miami crowd grew restless.

But finally, Joshua knocked Paul down twice in the fifth round and once more in the sixth before the final stoppage.

Paul showed incredible resilience by getting up, but the accumulation of damage led the referee to wave it off at 1:31 in the sixth round.

During his post-fight interview, a visibly battered Paul spat blood as he revealed he believed his jaw was "definitely" broken, but admitted it was still "fun" to step into the ring with one of the sport's biggest stars.

"Yeah, I'm feeling good," he said.

"That was fun. I love this sport. I gave it my best. It's f-----g crazy. I had a blast, and thank you to all the fans. I'm just blessed by God to be able to put on performances like this and big shows with Netflix. Thank you to all my fans and everyone at home.

"Anthony's a great fighter. I got my arse beat, but that's what this sport's about.

"I think my jaw is broken, by the way ... we're going to heal the broken jaw. Come back and fight people my way. I'm gonna come back and keep on winning."

The injury likely occurred in the final stages.

Joshua landed at will in the fifth and sixth rounds, connecting with a leg-buckling left hook and a series of punishing right hands that ultimately led to a stoppage.

Joshua landed 48 punches to Paul's 16 in the six rounds the fight lasted, but never looked in any real danger of succumbing to what would have been a major upset.

The reaction online was highly critical of how long it took for Joshua to cause damage.

The former world champ admitted he needed to "shake off the cobwebs" after a lengthy stint away from the squared circle and heaped praise on Paul.

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua said.

"The end goal was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. It took a bit longer than expected, but the right hand finally found the destination.

"Jake Paul has done really well tonight, I want to give him his props - he got up time and time again, it was difficult for him ... it takes a real man to do that.

"We have to give Jake his respect for trying, but he came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month layoff, and we shook off the cobwebs."

Joshua then called out a fellow British superstar for a long-awaited fight.

"And if Tyson Fury is as serious as he thinks he is and wants to put down his Twitter fingers and put on some gloves ... step in the ring with me next," he said.

"Don't do all that talking. Let's see you in the ring and talk with your fists."

Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn confirmed the Joshua-Fury plan was in the works.

"The plan is to fight in the spring and then obviously fight Tyson Fury," he said.

"We're not gonna rush him back if he's not ready, but it won't be long."

In the co-main event, Alycia Baumgardner cruised to a clinical unanimous decision victory over Lela Beaudoin, retaining her unified world titles.

Earlier on the card, UFC icon Anderson Silva stopped fellow mixed martial arts convert Tyron Woodley in the second round with a vicious uppercut, while Australian star Cherneka Johnson defended her undisputed world title in a dominant display.