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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 mat in shock and awe after a devastating right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was attempting to utter "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his scrambled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this garbage," snapped the referee, summing up the dismal affair much more succinctly than any observer else managed to.

Pinned in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely dazed moment.

So this is how it feels, and looks, to be hit hard by a genuine professional fighter, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the result of a proper power shot meant Paul would not be able to rise and taunt his opponent before the referee called the charade to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a dull ache spread through his jaw, Paul finally grasped how difficult, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a decent level of competition.

An Unimpressive Commanding Win for the Victor

Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing during the bedlam. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a precise and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the contest. Instead of glowering with menace or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared tentative and crude for almost five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Without the gas to flee any more, and resorting to falling to the canvas as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered helpless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the brutal finish, but, up to that point, he had looked like a sad shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

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

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the press conference that followed, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he demanded a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that bout comes far too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the far side of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The youthful British heavyweight likely have required less than half the amount of rounds that Joshua required to send Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Response

But the public receives what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means more pitiful celebrity fights. Paul appeared genuinely proud and brash to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of the next day, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in crimson.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a similarly faded presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate another opponent with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the medical facility, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was another bleak summary of the evening as Paul mangled blunt truth with blood-flecked bullshit and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper beating from one of the greatest to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."