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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped agape, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he collapsed to the canvas in shock and awe after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was trying to say "Whoa!" as the severity of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

"Those watching didn't spend money to see this crap," snapped the referee, encapsulating the sorry spectacle far 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 cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of the sweet science enveloped him. 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 is like, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a genuine professional fighter, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the result of a clean power shot ensured Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the official called the charade over. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a dull ache radiated through his jaw, Paul finally understood how difficult, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a decent standard of competition.

A Far From Commanding Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he made a cut-throat motion that suggested a clinical and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the contest. Rather than exuding intimidation or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared tentative and crude for almost five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, shaped the outcome. Lacking the stamina to flee any more, and reduced to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered helpless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the vicious ending, but, until then, he had seemed a sad shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Comments

"That was not the best display," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than expected, but the straight right finally reached its target."

Joshua praised Paul's bravery but he added an excuse for his own stilted showing. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his previous loss. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I am eager to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview that followed, a cheerful Joshua attempted a woeful impression of his domestic rival as he demanded a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the downward slope of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting heavyweights 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 rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed fewer than half the number of rounds that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

Paul's Defiant Reaction

But the fans receives what the public desires, and that certainly means more pitiful crossover fights. Paul seemed truly proud and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he posted an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That lighthearted nod to the Mexican superstar, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a equally diminished force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah is undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate someone else with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was another bleak summary of the night as Paul mixed blunt truth with blood-flecked bravado 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 shit and I'm going to return and continue winning."