The ‘Big Brit’ Anthony Joshua was expected to win, and he did, knocking out YouTube boxing star Jake Paul in the sixth round on Friday (December 19).

Joshua didn’t cover himself in glory in this fight, and the ring rust was evident.

Paul showed courage but lacked stamina and technique, and his shortcomings were exposed.

At six foot, six inches and weighing in at 243.4 pounds, Joshua’s size was a deciding factor against Paul, who has a six-foot, one-inch, 216-pound frame 

Although billed as a battle of heavyweights, it was indeed a big heavyweight up against a cruiserweight.

Paul has little experience going up against real-deal fighters, whereas Joshua is a two-time heavyweight champ as well as an Olympic gold medalist. There was a huge gulf in class. Paul was not expected to make it beyond round two.

The man from Ohio’s strategy was clear –  frustrate Joshua and keep him at arm’s length. For the first two rounds, Paul led on the scorecard, throwing more punches. Joshua took some time to get going and looked plodding in the process.

Paul looks undaunted by the giant he faced.

This was a Netflix fight with both men splitting a US$184 million purse. The streaming company has begun to put on boxing fights, which attract huge viewership. This one again should help Paul’s stock rise and continue to make him a” box office draw”, as they said back in the day.

Paul said he would hurt Joshua,  knock him out somewhere after the fourth round. Instead, he tire,d and Joshua started landing some heavy punches after the halfway stage. Paul kept falling to his knees and clinging to Joshua for dear life. He was knocked down twice in the fifth round and again in the sixth before Joshua ensured he could not make the count. He broke Paul’s jaw in two places before raising his arms in victory.

“I just got tired. It was a lot handling his weight. If I had better cardio, I think I could have kept fighting. I did my personal best,” was Paul’s assessment of his efforts in Miami.

It was a courageous performance by Paul, and one of the world’s best heavyweights today didn’t easily dispatch him. He can build upon that and give the top cruiserweight something to think about.

As for Joshua, he has a lot of work to do. If he had lost this or won it narrowly on points after the eighth round, questions would be asked of his bona fides and his right to go up against the best of the best in the division. Joshua is an impressive specimen, but lacks fluidity; he’s too robotic and cautious. He doesn’t seem able to impose himself on opponents. It was again the case last night in Miami 

Anthony Joshua can’t be happy with that performance, and already many are questioning his legacy.

The days of the great boxers are gone (Ali, Tyson, Hagler, Mayweather, Lewis, Holmes, Holyfield), and the entertainment quotient now determines the sport. Some say Jake Paul is the poster child for this new turn in boxing, with big paydays from Netflix to showcase “celebrities” rather than genuine boxing athletes who have earned the right to perform on the world’s biggest stages.

The sport needs a reset, and real boxing fans want to see mouth-watering match-ups, not circus acts.

After the fight, Paul said, “I’m going to take a little break. I’ve been going hard for six years. I’ll take some time off. This is amazing. We will heal the broken jaw, come back and fight people my weight.

“Anthony Joshua is a great fighter, I got beat, but that’s what this sport is about. I will come back and keep winning.”

For his part, Joshua is looking to take on Tyson Fury, who is retired, for what will be the battle of the British heavyweights. He may want to take on a couple of tune-up fights before getting in the ring with Fury.

“If Tyson Fury is as serious as he thinks he is and he wants to put down his Twitter fingers and put on some gloves and come and fight one of the realest fighters out there that will take on any challenge, step into the ring with me next if you are a real bad boy,” said Joshua.