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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped agape, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers 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 "Wow!" as the severity of the impact registered to his scrambled senses.

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

Pinned in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of boxing became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that broke his jaw in two separate places, Paul was lost in an utterly dazed moment.

So this is how it feels, and looks, to be hit hard by a real professional fighter, an Olympic champion and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the result of a proper power shot ensured Paul would not be able to get up and taunt his opponent before the official called the contest over. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a dull ache spread through his jaw, Paul at last understood how hard, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of competition.

An Unimpressive Impressive Victory for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive amid the chaos. After his empty victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a precise and deadly finish when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the fight. Instead of glowering with menace or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared tentative and awkward for almost five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, shaped the outcome. Lacking the stamina to escape any more, and reduced to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was left helpless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the brutal finish, but, until then, he had seemed a mournful shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Comments

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than expected, but the right hand eventually found its target."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he added an explanation for his own labored performance. "He faced a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "We shook off the rust, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the press conference that followed, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of his domestic rival as he demanded a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that matchup comes far too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the downward slope of the peak.

In contrast, the most compelling big men in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the undoubted ruler of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The young British heavyweight likely have needed fewer than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably astonished stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful celebrity fights. Paul seemed truly satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the two fractures highlighted in red.

That jokey reference to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, showed that Paul's brazen audacity is undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find another opponent with whom he can earn north of $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 bleak symbol of the evening as Paul mixed harsh reality with blood-flecked bullshit and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little beating from one of the best to ever step in the ring. I adore this shit and I'm going to return and continue winning."