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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped wide open, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the canvas in shock and awe following a pulverising right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was attempting to utter "Wow!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his scrambled senses.

"Those watching didn't pay to see this rubbish," said the referee, summing up the sorry affair far more succinctly than any observer 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 like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was caught in an utterly dazed moment.

So that is what it feels, and looks, to be hit hard 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 knocked down, but the consequences of a clean punch meant Paul would not be able to get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the charade over. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a numbing throb radiated through his jaw, Paul at last grasped how hard, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a respectable level of competition.

An Unimpressive Impressive Victory for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a clinical and lethal execution when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the contest. Rather than exuding intimidation or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared hesitant and awkward for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to flee any longer, and reduced to falling to the deck as often as he could for a breather, Paul was left helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal finish, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Comments

"That was not the finest performance," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. That has been the request, and that's what was on my mind. It took a little more time than anticipated, but the right hand eventually found its target."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he offered an explanation for his own stilted performance. "He faced a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his previous defeat. "We shook off the rust, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the far side of the peak.

In contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world remain the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk remains the unquestioned ruler of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The young British heavyweight would probably have required fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua required to knock Paul into a suitably astonished state.

Paul's Defiant Reaction

But the public gets what the public wants, and that certainly means additional pitiful crossover fights. Paul appeared truly satisfied and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he shared an X-ray, with the pair of breaks highlighted in crimson.

That jokey reference to the Mexican superstar, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a similarly faded force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find another opponent with whom he can make more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim summary of the evening as Paul mangled harsh reality with gory bullshit and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper beating from one of the best to ever do it. I love this shit and I'm going to come back and continue winning."