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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped wide open, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in shock and awe following a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was attempting to utter "Whoa!" as the force of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this garbage," said the referee, encapsulating the dismal affair much more succinctly than anyone else managed to.

Trapped 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 became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an completely stunned moment.

So that is what it is like, and looks, to be hit hard by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the result of a clean punch meant Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the official waved the contest over. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul at last grasped how difficult, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent standard of competition.

An Unimpressive Impressive Victory for the Victor

Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive during the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that suggested a precise and lethal execution when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared hesitant and awkward for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Without the gas to flee any longer, and reduced to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered helpless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the brutal finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a sad imitation of the boxer he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the finest performance," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than expected, but the straight right eventually found its destination."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own stilted showing. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his previous defeat. "We shook off the rust, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

The Future: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua attempted a poor impression of his domestic rival as he called for a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned king of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The youthful British heavyweight likely have required less than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

Paul's Defiant Response

But the fans gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful celebrity contests. Paul appeared genuinely satisfied and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of the next day, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That lighthearted reference to the Mexican superstar, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a equally diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah is undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find someone else with whom he can make north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was another bleak symbol of the evening as Paul mangled harsh reality with blood-flecked bravado and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the greatest to ever do it. I love this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."