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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped wide open, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief after a pulverising right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to utter "Whoa!" as the force of the blow sank in to his scrambled senses.

"The fans didn't pay to see this crap," said the referee, encapsulating the dismal affair much more effectively than any observer else could.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the gravity of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the shot that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely dazed moment.

So this is how it is like, and appears, to be hit hard by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" 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 meant Paul would not be able to get up and taunt his opponent before the official called the contest to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a dull ache radiated through his jaw, Paul at last grasped how difficult, grueling, and perilous boxing is at a decent standard of competition.

A Far From Commanding Victory for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive during the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a clinical and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the contest. Rather than glowering with menace or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed tentative and awkward for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in top-level boxing, shaped the result. Lacking the stamina to escape any longer, and reduced to falling to the canvas as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was left defenseless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the vicious ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.

The Winner's Aftermath Assessment

"That was not the finest performance," Joshua admitted. "The end goal 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 anticipated, but the right hand finally reached its destination."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He faced a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his previous defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I am eager to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua attempted a woeful impression of Tyson Fury as he called for a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the far side of the peak.

In contrast, the most interesting big men in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and the British prospect. Usyk is still the undoubted king of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight likely have required fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua required to knock Paul into a appropriately wowed stupor.

Paul's Unbowed Response

But the public receives what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful celebrity fights. Paul appeared truly satisfied and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he shared an X-ray, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That lighthearted nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a equally faded force, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah is unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find someone else with whom he can make north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the medical facility, Paul expelled a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim symbol of the evening as Paul mangled harsh reality with gory bravado and said: "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 keep on winning."