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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped wide open, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he sank to the mat in stunned disbelief after a devastating right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the force of the blow sank in to his scrambled senses.

"Those watching didn't pay to see this crap," snapped the referee, encapsulating the sorry affair far more effectively than anyone else could.

Trapped in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an utterly dazed moment.

So that is what it feels, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a genuine boxer, an Olympic champion and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly 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 rise and taunt his opponent before the official waved the charade to a halt. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul finally grasped how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a decent level of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive during the bedlam. After his empty victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that suggested a clinical and deadly finish when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the contest. Rather than exuding intimidation or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared tentative and crude for nearly five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in elite 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 rest, Paul was rendered defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal finish, but, until then, he had looked like a sad imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the finest performance," Joshua admitted. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than expected, but the right hand finally reached its target."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he offered an excuse for his own stilted showing. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview that followed, a jovial Joshua attempted a poor imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world remain the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk remains the unquestioned king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising talent. The young British heavyweight likely have required fewer than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua required to knock Paul into a appropriately wowed state.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Reaction

But the public gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional low-quality celebrity fights. Paul seemed genuinely satisfied and brash to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of the next day, he posted an X-ray, with the pair of breaks marked in crimson.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly faded presence, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah remains undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was another bleak symbol of the evening as Paul mangled blunt truth with blood-flecked bullshit and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little beating from one of the greatest to ever do it. I adore this sport and I'm going to return and keep on winning."