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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 stunned disbelief after a devastating right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was trying to say "Whoa!" as the severity of the blow registered to his rattled senses.

"Those watching didn't pay to see this rubbish," said the referee, encapsulating 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 not retreat or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the gravity of boxing became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was lost in an completely dazed moment.

So this is how it is like, and appears, to be hit hard by a real professional fighter, 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 clean punch meant Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the referee called the contest to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a dull ache spread through his jaw, Paul at last understood how hard, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent level of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Win for the Victor

Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a clinical and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the contest. Rather than glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared hesitant and awkward for almost five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, shaped the result. Without the gas to flee any more, and resorting to slipping to the canvas as often as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the vicious finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a mournful imitation of the boxer he was in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Comments

"That was not the finest performance," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than expected, but the right hand eventually reached its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he added an excuse for his own labored performance. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his last loss. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua tried out a poor impression of Tyson Fury as he called for a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that matchup comes far too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the peak.

In contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned king of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The young British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to send Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means more low-quality celebrity contests. Paul seemed truly satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of the next day, he posted an X-ray, with the pair of breaks marked in crimson.

That lighthearted reference to the Mexican superstar, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a equally diminished force, demonstrated that Paul's brazen audacity remains 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 ring floor. It was another grim symbol of the night as Paul mixed blunt truth with blood-flecked bravado and said: "I believe 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 come back and keep on winning."