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Jake Paul's mouth gaped wide open, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he sank to the mat in stunned disbelief following a devastating right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was trying to say "Wow!" as the severity of the blow registered to his rattled senses.

"The audience didn't pay to see this rubbish," snapped the referee, summing up the sorry spectacle much more effectively than any observer else could.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the gravity of boxing became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an completely stunned moment.

So that is what it feels, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a genuine professional fighter, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the result of a clean power shot ensured Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the referee waved the charade to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jaw, Paul finally grasped how difficult, grueling, and perilous boxing is at a decent standard of competition.

An Unimpressive Commanding Win for the Victor

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

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

Joshua's Aftermath Assessment

"That was not the finest display," Joshua admitted. "The end goal was to catch 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 right hand finally found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an excuse for his own stilted showing. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his previous defeat. "We dusted off the rust, and I am eager to head into 2026."

The Future: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the press conference that followed, a cheerful Joshua tried out a woeful impression of Tyson Fury as he demanded a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned ruler of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua required to send Paul into a suitably wowed state.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Reaction

But the public gets what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means more low-quality celebrity contests. Paul seemed genuinely satisfied and brash to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks marked in red.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly faded force, showed that Paul's brazen audacity remains undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was another bleak symbol of the night as Paul mangled blunt truth with blood-flecked bullshit and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little ass-whipping from one of the greatest to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and continue winning."