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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped wide open, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the mat in shock and awe after a devastating right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was attempting to utter "Whoa!" as the force of the impact registered to his scrambled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this rubbish," snapped the referee, summing up the dismal spectacle far more succinctly than any observer else could.

Trapped in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or cling 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 fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an utterly stunned moment.

So that is what it feels, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a real boxer, an Olympic champion and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been sent to the floor, but the result of a proper punch ensured Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official waved the charade to a halt. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a dull ache radiated through his jawbone, Paul at last grasped how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of competition.

A Far From Impressive Win for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing during the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that hinted at a clinical and lethal finish when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the fight. Instead of glowering with menace or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed hesitant and crude for almost five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to flee any longer, and resorting to slipping to the canvas as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, until then, he had seemed a mournful shadow of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Comments

"It wasn't the finest performance," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the straight right eventually found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an excuse for his own labored showing. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, referencing his last defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a poor imitation of Tyson Fury as he demanded a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably get his wish, but that matchup comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the far side of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most interesting big men in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned king of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have required less than half the number of rounds that Joshua required to knock Paul into a suitably wowed state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans receives what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means more low-quality crossover fights. Paul seemed genuinely satisfied and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he shared an X-ray, with the two fractures highlighted in red.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a equally diminished presence, showed that Paul's brazen audacity is unbroken. It may 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 departing to the medical facility, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more grim symbol of the night as Paul mixed blunt truth with blood-flecked bravado and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper beating from one of the greatest to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to return and keep on winning."