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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped agape, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the canvas in stunned disbelief after a pulverising right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was attempting to utter "Wow!" as the force of the blow registered to his rattled senses.

"Those watching didn't spend money to see this rubbish," snapped the referee, summing up the dismal spectacle far more effectively than any observer 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 like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the shot that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was lost in an completely dazed moment.

So that is what it feels, and appears, to be hit hard by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the result of a proper punch meant Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the charade over. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a numbing throb spread through his jaw, Paul finally grasped how hard, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a respectable standard of competition.

An Unimpressive Commanding Win for the Victor

Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the bedlam. After his empty victory, he made a cut-throat motion that hinted at a precise and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed hesitant and crude for nearly five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Without the gas to escape any more, and reduced to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left helpless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the vicious finish, but, until then, he had seemed a mournful imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Comments

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

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

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a cheerful Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the downward slope of the peak.

In contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned ruler of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The young British heavyweight likely have required fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a appropriately wowed stupor.

Paul's Defiant Reaction

But the public 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 sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of the next day, he posted an X-ray, with the pair of breaks marked in crimson.

That lighthearted nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah is undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul expelled a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was another grim summary of the evening as Paul mangled harsh reality with gory bullshit and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper beating from one of the best to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and continue winning."