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

"The audience didn't spend money to see this garbage," said the referee, encapsulating the dismal spectacle much more effectively than anyone else managed to.

Pinned in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not run or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely stunned moment.

So this is how it feels, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the word.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been sent to the floor, but the result of a proper punch meant Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the referee waved the charade over. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a dull ache radiated through his jaw, Paul at last grasped how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of competition.

A Far From Impressive Victory for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing amid the bedlam. After his empty victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a clinical and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the contest. Instead of glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed hesitant and awkward for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in top-level boxing, shaped the outcome. Without the gas to escape any more, and resorting to falling to the deck as frequently 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 boxer he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Aftermath Comments

"That was not the best display," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the straight right eventually found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his previous loss. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the press conference that followed, a cheerful Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of his domestic rival as he demanded a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that matchup comes far too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting big men in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned ruler of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rising force. The young British heavyweight would probably have required fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a appropriately wowed state.

Paul's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional low-quality crossover fights. Paul appeared truly proud and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in crimson.

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

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim symbol of the evening as Paul mixed harsh reality with blood-flecked bullshit and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."