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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped wide open, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief following a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was trying to say "Wow!" as the severity of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this rubbish," said the referee, summing up the dismal spectacle far more effectively than any observer else managed to.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was caught in an completely stunned moment.

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

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the result of a proper punch meant Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the referee called the charade to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a numbing throb radiated through his jaw, Paul at last grasped how difficult, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Impressive Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the chaos. After his hollow victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a precise and deadly execution when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the contest. Instead of glowering with menace or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed tentative and crude for nearly five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in top-level boxing, shaped the outcome. Without the gas to escape any longer, and resorting to falling to the canvas as often as he could for a breather, Paul was left defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the vicious ending, but, up to that point, he had seemed a sad imitation of the fighter he was in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Comments

"That was not the best display," Joshua admitted. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. That has been the request, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the straight right eventually reached its target."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an explanation for his own stilted performance. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his previous loss. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the press conference afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a poor impression of Tyson Fury as he demanded a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their careers. Both men are on the downward slope of the hill.

In contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the undoubted ruler of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising force. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed less than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a suitably astonished stupor.

Paul's Defiant Reaction

But the public receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional low-quality celebrity fights. Paul seemed truly proud and brash to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he posted an radiograph, with the pair of breaks marked in crimson.

That jokey nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a equally diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's brazen audacity remains unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was one more bleak symbol of the night as Paul mixed blunt truth with blood-flecked bullshit and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the greatest to ever do it. I adore this sport and I'm going to come back and continue winning."