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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped wide open, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he collapsed to the canvas in shock and awe following a devastating right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was trying to say "Wow!" as the force of the impact registered to his scrambled senses.

"Those watching didn't spend money to see this crap," said the referee, encapsulating the dismal spectacle much more succinctly than anyone else could.

Trapped in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of boxing became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that broke his jaw in two separate places, Paul was caught in an utterly stunned moment.

So that is what it feels, and appears, to be hit hard by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the result of a proper power shot meant Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the referee called the charade over. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jaw, Paul at last understood how difficult, grueling, and perilous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Commanding Win for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a clinical and lethal execution when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed tentative and awkward for almost five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Without the gas to flee any longer, and resorting to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, until then, he had looked like a sad shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Comments

"That was not the best performance," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the straight right finally reached its target."

Joshua praised Paul's bravery but he added an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his last loss. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the press conference afterwards, a jovial Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of his domestic rival as he called for a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that matchup comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the downward slope of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most compelling big men in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned ruler of the division, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed less than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

Paul's Unbowed Response

But the public gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional low-quality celebrity fights. Paul seemed truly satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of the next day, he posted an radiograph, with the pair of breaks marked in red.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a equally diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah is undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find someone else with whom he can make more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more bleak summary of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with blood-flecked bravado and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little beating from one of the best to ever do it. I adore this sport and I'm going to come back and continue winning."