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Jake Paul's mouth gaped agape, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in shock and awe after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the force of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this crap," said the referee, summing up the dismal spectacle far more succinctly than anyone else managed to.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling 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 broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an utterly dazed moment.

So this is how it is like, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a real boxer, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been sent to the floor, but the result of a proper punch meant Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the official waved the charade to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a dull ache radiated through his jawbone, Paul at last understood how hard, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of competition.

A Far From Impressive Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive during the chaos. After his hollow victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that hinted at a precise and deadly finish when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the contest. Rather than exuding intimidation or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed tentative and awkward 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 falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was left helpless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the brutal finish, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Aftermath Comments

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the straight right finally reached its target."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an explanation for his own labored performance. "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: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he demanded a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that matchup comes far 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 weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have required fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua required to knock Paul into a suitably astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Response

But the fans gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means more low-quality celebrity fights. Paul appeared truly satisfied and brash to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of the next day, he shared an X-ray, with the pair of breaks highlighted in crimson.

That lighthearted nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah is unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find another opponent with whom he can make more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was another bleak symbol of the night as Paul mixed harsh reality with gory bravado 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 love this shit and I'm going to come back and continue winning."