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Jake Paul's mouth gaped agape, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he sank to the mat in stunned disbelief following a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was trying to say "Whoa!" as the force of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this garbage," snapped the referee, summing up the sorry spectacle much more succinctly than anyone else managed to.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the gravity of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely dazed moment.

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

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the result of a clean power shot ensured Paul would not be able to get up and taunt his opponent before the official waved the charade to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how difficult, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent standard of professionalism.

A Far From Commanding Victory for Joshua

Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive during the chaos. After his hollow victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that hinted at a precise and lethal execution when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the contest. Instead of exuding intimidation or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared tentative and crude for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Without the gas to escape any longer, and resorting to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was left helpless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the brutal finish, but, until then, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Assessment

"That was not the finest performance," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than expected, but the straight right finally reached its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he offered an excuse for his own stilted showing. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his previous loss. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I am eager to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the press conference afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of his domestic rival as he demanded a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that bout comes far too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting big men in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned king of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising force. The young British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a suitably wowed state.

Paul's Unbowed Response

But the public gets what the public desires, and that certainly means additional low-quality celebrity fights. Paul seemed truly proud and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he posted an X-ray, with the two fractures highlighted in crimson.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a equally diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah is unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate another opponent with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the medical facility, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was another grim summary of the evening as Paul mangled harsh reality with gory bravado and said: "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 love this shit and I'm going to return and keep on winning."