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

"The audience didn't pay to see this crap," said the referee, encapsulating the sorry affair far more succinctly than any observer else managed to.

Trapped 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 serious reality of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an utterly stunned moment.

So that is what it feels, and appears, to be hit hard by a real professional fighter, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the result of a clean power shot meant Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the official waved the contest to a halt. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a dull ache radiated through his jaw, Paul finally understood how difficult, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent standard of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Impressive Victory for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive during the chaos. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a precise and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the contest. Instead of glowering with menace or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed tentative and crude for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the result. Without the gas to escape any more, and reduced to slipping to the canvas as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the vicious finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a mournful shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Comments

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua admitted. "The end goal 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 anticipated, but the straight right finally found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an explanation for his own labored showing. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "We shook off the rust, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua tried out a woeful impression of Tyson Fury as he called for a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that bout comes far too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the downward slope of the peak.

In stark 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 twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed fewer than half the number of rounds that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a appropriately astonished stupor.

Paul's Unbowed Response

But the public receives 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 early hours of Saturday morning, he posted an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in crimson.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a equally faded force, showed that Paul's brazen audacity is unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find someone else with whom he can make 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 one more grim symbol of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with gory bravado and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little beating from one of the best to ever do it. I love this shit and I'm going to return and continue winning."