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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped agape, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he collapsed to the mat in shock and awe following a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was trying to utter "Whoa!" as the force of the blow sank in to his scrambled senses.

"The fans didn't pay to see this garbage," snapped the referee, encapsulating the dismal affair far more effectively than anyone else managed to.

Trapped in a 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 gravity of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand 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 genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the result of a proper punch meant Paul would not be able to rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the referee waved the charade to a halt. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a dull ache spread through his jawbone, Paul finally grasped how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Win for the Victor

Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive during the bedlam. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a precise and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the contest. Instead of glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed hesitant and crude for almost five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, shaped the result. Without the gas to escape any longer, and reduced to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left helpless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.

The Winner's Aftermath Comments

"It wasn't the finest performance," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the right hand finally reached its destination."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he offered an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, referencing his last loss. "We dusted off the rust, and I can't wait to roll into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he demanded a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that matchup comes much too late in their careers. Both men are on the downward slope of the peak.

In contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and the British prospect. Usyk remains the unquestioned ruler of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising force. The young British heavyweight likely have required less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua required to send Paul into a appropriately astonished stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means more low-quality crossover contests. Paul seemed truly proud and brash to have had his jaw broken 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 crimson.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a equally faded force, showed that Paul's brazen audacity is undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate someone else with whom he can make north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim symbol of the night as Paul mixed blunt truth with gory bravado and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the greatest to ever step in the ring. I love this shit and I'm going to come back and continue winning."