Anthony Joshua apologised to Jake Paul's mother after his brutal knockout victory over the YouTuber-turned-boxer in Miami on Friday night. The former heavyweight world champion secured a sixth-round stoppage, breaking Paul's jaw in two places.
After the fight, Joshua worked his way through the crowd to find Paul's mother, Pam Stepnick. 'Even Anthony Joshua had some class and apologised to me, essentially,' Stepnick said on the Impaulsive podcast. 'He worked his way through the crowd and came up to me and said: 'Mom, just know it's just boxing. It's just the fight game'.'
Stepnick was less forgiving towards promoter Eddie Hearn, saying she wanted to punch him for smiling while her son was struggling. She acknowledged that Paul chose to fight a 'humongous guy' and believed he could knock Joshua out.
Joshua, who is reportedly close to agreeing a fight with Tyson Fury in 2026, admitted he needed to give Paul a 'systematic breakdown'. 'I said I'm going to take his soul, I said I'm going to see it leaving his body round after round,' he said. 'I just took my time and I got the job done within the time limit of eight rounds.'
Paul, who underwent surgery for the broken jaw, remained defiant. 'Double broken jaw. Give me Canelo in 10 days,' he said. 'Anthony's a great fighter, I got my ass beat but that's what this sport's about. We're going to heal the broken jaw, fight someone my weight and go for the cruiserweight world title.'
