Anthony Joshua defeats Jake Paul in sixth round of Miami fight.

Joshua was made to work far harder than he would have liked to extinguish the challenge of a brave but limited opponent. Picture: Getty

British heavyweight Anthony Joshua only needed six rounds to stop boxing novice Jake Paul, who failed to deliver on his promises in one of the most striking mismatches in boxing history.

Joshua claimed the 29th victory of his professional career in 33 outings and can now turn his attention to a legitimate challenge against Tyson Fury next year.

The fight marked the end of a 14-month hiatus for Joshua, 36, while for 28-year-old Paul it was the biggest fight since his boxing career began in 2020.

Jake Paul is knocked down against Anthony Joshua in their heavyweight bout

Joshua said it "wasn't the best performance", adding: "It took a bit longer than expected. But the right hand finally found the destination.". Picture: Getty

At the weigh-in on Friday, Joshua boasted an almost two-stone advantage over Paul, who has regularly fought at cruiserweight since he entered the world of boxing.

Paul refused to engage by dancing around the ring for much of the fight, before the two-time world champion finally imposed himself by knocking Paul down twice in the fifth round.

He was down again in the sixth before Joshua landed a powerful right hand that brought the night to a conclusion at Miami's Kaseya Center.

The American did not beat the count and the match concluded without any suspected long term damage for either fighter.

Overall, Paul failed to deliver on his promise to pull off the greatest upset in sporting history.

He spent much of the fight tumbling to the canvas and clutching at Joshua's legs, a reflection of the two-stone weight gap and how badly he struggled to cope with it.

After the fight Paul said: "I'm feeling good, that was fun. I love this sport. I gave it my all, It's f****** crazy. I had a blast.

"I got my ass beat, but that's what this sport is about. I'mma (going to) come back and keep on winning."

He added: "I just got tired to be honest. He did amazing and hits really hard."

The event was broadcast live to more than 300 million Netflix subscribers.