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Jake Paul's mouth gaped agape, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in shock and awe after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was trying to utter "Wow!" as the severity of the blow registered to his rattled senses.

"The audience didn't pay to see this rubbish," said the referee, encapsulating the sorry spectacle much more effectively than anyone else managed to.

Pinned in a neutral 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 gravity of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely dazed moment.

So this is how it feels, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a real professional fighter, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been sent to the floor, but the result of a clean punch meant Paul could not rise and taunt his opponent before the official waved the charade over. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul finally grasped how hard, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a decent standard of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Victory for Joshua

Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive during the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a precise and lethal finish when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the fight. Instead of exuding intimidation or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed tentative and crude for nearly five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, shaped the result. Lacking the stamina to flee any longer, and resorting to falling to the canvas as often as he could for a breather, Paul was left helpless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the vicious finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a mournful imitation of the boxer he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the best display," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than expected, but the right hand eventually reached its target."

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

The Future: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview that followed, a jovial Joshua tried out a poor impression of his domestic rival as he demanded a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the far side of the peak.

In contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned king of the division, after defeating 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 certainly means more low-quality crossover contests. Paul seemed genuinely satisfied and cocky 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 marked in crimson.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah remains undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the hospital, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more grim symbol of the evening as Paul mangled blunt truth with blood-flecked bullshit and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I love this shit and I'm going to come back and continue winning."