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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped wide open, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the canvas in shock and awe following a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was attempting to utter "Wow!" as the severity of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this garbage," said the referee, encapsulating the dismal affair far more succinctly than any observer else could.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the gravity of boxing became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that broke his jaw in two separate places, Paul was lost in an utterly stunned moment.

So this is how it is like, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the result of a proper power shot ensured Paul would not be able to rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official waved the contest to a halt. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul at last understood how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Commanding Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a precise and deadly execution when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the contest. Instead of exuding intimidation or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared hesitant and crude for almost five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in top-level boxing, dictated the result. Lacking the stamina to escape any longer, and resorting to slipping to the canvas as often as he could for a breather, Paul was left helpless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a sad shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.

The Winner's Aftermath Assessment

"That was not the finest display," Joshua admitted. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than expected, but the right hand eventually reached its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he offered an excuse for his own labored showing. "He faced a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, referencing his last defeat. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I am eager to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview that followed, a cheerful Joshua attempted a woeful impression of Tyson Fury as he called for a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the peak.

In contrast, the most interesting big men in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the undoubted ruler of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The youthful British heavyweight likely have required less than half the number of rounds that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Response

But the fans receives what the public wants, and that certainly means more low-quality crossover fights. Paul appeared truly proud and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of the next day, he posted an radiograph, with the two fractures marked in crimson.

That jokey nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah remains unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else with whom he can make north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the hospital, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was another grim symbol of the evening as Paul mixed harsh reality with gory bullshit and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little beating from one of the best to ever step in the ring. I adore this sport and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."