There was no Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event this weekend, but there was still plenty of combat action going on all over the world. From the “Jake vs. Joshua” event on Netflix on Friday night (Dec. 19, 2025) in Miami, Florida, to Misfis 23 going down the next day in Dubai. Not to mention PFL was holding an event in Africa the same day.
While there were a lot of big winners and losers, Jake Paul — the man who turned the boxing world upside down — suffered a knockout loss at the hands of Anthony
Joshua, leaving him with a broken jaw, his first-ever knockout defeat and one bad hangover.
For the longest time the biggest knock on “El Gallo” was his knack for being very careful when it comes to picking his opponents. But after his bout against Gervonta Davis was scrapped, Paul surprised everyone by taking up a challenge against one of the biggest and baddest boxers in the game today in Joshua.
Many thought the fight was going to be just another spectacle, but it ended up being the real deal because while Joshua did take a bit to warm up, when he found the sweet spot he delivered a teeth-crushing blow that put “El Gallo” out for the count (see it again here). Whether you like Paul or not, you have to give him some credit for finally stepping into the ring with a man who isn’t over the hill and actually in the prime of his career.
On top of that, he was outweighed by over 30 pounds by the towering Brit who carries knockout power to take out the best big men out there. A Cruiserweight getting hit with one of his shots never had a chance to end well, but Paul still took the leap and suffered the consequences for it. Perhaps he was finally trying to silence all of his critics, or he actually thought he had a chance.
Despite the crushing and devastating defeat, Paul isn’t going anywhere. He might take a break to heal his wounds, but he is determined to come back better than ever, and going six rounds with Joshua will only give him that much more confidence.
“I’m going to come back and fight people my weight and go for the cruiserweight world championship at some point,” Paul said during his post-fight interview. “I’m going to take a little break. I’ve been going hard for six years, so I’m going to take some time off.”
That said, next time around he will be taking on someone his own size. We also hope it will be someone with legit skills that can give him trouble. There really is no telling where Paul will turn to for his next challenge, but you can bet there will be plenty of combat stars out there chomping on the bit to win the sweepstakes and the bag that comes with facing the YouTube star-turned boxer.
Here are five possible options:
- Tommy Fury rematch
- Manny Pacquiao
- Gervonta Davis
- Ryan Garcia
- Logan Paul
Some of those are realistic and some farfetched, either way it will be interesting to see what comes next. In the meantime, care to offer up a suggestion (or three) of your own?
For complete Misfits Boxing 23 & Paul vs. Joshua results, coverage and highlights, click here and here.
