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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped wide open, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers 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 "Whoa!" as the severity of the blow registered to his rattled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this rubbish," snapped the referee, summing up the sorry affair much more succinctly than any observer else managed to.

Trapped 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 like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was caught in an utterly stunned moment.

So this is how it feels, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the result of a clean punch ensured Paul could not rise and taunt his opponent before the official called the contest to a halt. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a numbing throb radiated through his jaw, Paul finally grasped how difficult, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent standard of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Impressive Win for the Victor

Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing amid the bedlam. After his empty victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that hinted at a clinical and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the fight. Instead of glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed tentative and awkward for nearly five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, shaped the outcome. Lacking the stamina to escape any longer, and resorting to falling to the canvas as often as he could for a breather, Paul was left helpless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the brutal ending, but, until then, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the fighter he was in 2017.

The Winner's Aftermath Assessment

"It wasn't the best display," Joshua admitted. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than anticipated, but the straight right finally reached its target."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he added an explanation for his own labored showing. "He faced a genuine competitor 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: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua attempted a poor imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the far side of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most interesting big men in the world are the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk is still the unquestioned ruler of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising talent. The young British heavyweight would probably have required fewer than half the number of rounds that Joshua required to knock Paul into a suitably astonished stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Reaction

But the fans gets what the public desires, and that certainly means more pitiful celebrity fights. Paul seemed truly satisfied and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of the next day, he posted an X-ray, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That jokey reference to the Mexican superstar, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a similarly faded presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains unbroken. It may 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 medical facility, Paul expelled a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was another grim summary of the evening as Paul mangled blunt truth with gory bravado and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A nice little ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I love this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."