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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped wide open, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he collapsed to the canvas in stunned disbelief after a devastating right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was trying to utter "Whoa!" as the force of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this garbage," snapped the referee, encapsulating the sorry spectacle far more effectively than any observer else could.

Trapped in a corner of the ring in the middle of 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 shot that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was lost in an completely stunned moment.

So this is how it is like, and appears, to be hit hard by a genuine professional fighter, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the consequences of a clean power shot meant Paul would not be able to rise and taunt his opponent before the official waved the contest over. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a dull ache spread through his jaw, Paul at last understood how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of competition.

A Far From Impressive Victory for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his empty victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that suggested a clinical and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the contest. Rather than glowering with menace or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared tentative and awkward for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, dictated the result. Without the gas to escape any longer, and reduced to falling to the canvas as often as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the vicious finish, but, until then, he had looked like a sad shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the best display," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than expected, but the straight right eventually found its destination."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he added an explanation for his own stilted performance. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his previous defeat. "We shook 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 his domestic rival as he called for a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the far side of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most compelling big men in the world are the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk remains the undoubted king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The young British heavyweight would probably have needed fewer than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua required to knock Paul into a suitably astonished stupor.

Paul's Unbowed Response

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

That jokey reference to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a equally faded presence, showed that Paul's brazen audacity is unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was another grim symbol of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with blood-flecked bullshit and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little beating from one of the greatest to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and continue winning."