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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped agape, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the mat in stunned disbelief following a devastating right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to say "Wow!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

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

Pinned in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not retreat 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 broke his jaw in two separate places, 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 gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the consequences of a clean power shot meant Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the contest to a halt. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how difficult, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Impressive Win for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his empty victory, he made a cut-throat motion that suggested a precise and deadly finish when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the fight. Instead of exuding intimidation or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed hesitant and awkward for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to flee any more, and resorting to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered helpless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the brutal finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a sad shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Comments

"It wasn't the finest performance," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than expected, but the straight right finally reached its target."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he added an explanation for his own stilted performance. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his last loss. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I am eager to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the press conference that followed, a jovial Joshua attempted a poor imitation of his domestic rival as he called for a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that matchup comes much too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the peak.

In contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the undoubted ruler of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rising force. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably astonished state.

Paul's Unbowed Reaction

But the public gets what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful celebrity contests. Paul seemed genuinely proud and cocky 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 highlighted in red.

That jokey nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate another opponent with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the medical facility, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was one more bleak symbol of the evening as Paul mixed harsh reality with blood-flecked bravado and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little beating from one of the best to ever do it. I love this sport and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."