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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped wide open, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he sank to the mat in shock and awe following a devastating right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to utter "Wow!" as the severity of the impact registered to his rattled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this garbage," snapped the referee, summing up the sorry spectacle far more succinctly than any observer else could.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or hold on to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was lost in an completely stunned moment.

So this is how it feels, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a real professional fighter, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is certainly the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the result of a clean power shot meant Paul would not be able to get up and taunt his opponent before the referee called the charade to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a dull ache radiated through his jaw, Paul at last grasped how difficult, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Impressive Win for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a precise and lethal finish when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the contest. Instead of glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared tentative and crude for nearly five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, shaped the result. Lacking the stamina to escape any longer, and reduced to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the vicious ending, but, up to that point, he had seemed a sad shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Aftermath 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 expected, but the straight right eventually reached its destination."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he added an explanation for his own labored showing. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his previous defeat. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of his domestic rival as he called for a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes much too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and the British prospect. Usyk is still the unquestioned ruler of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rising force. The young British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Reaction

But the public gets what the public desires, and that certainly means additional low-quality crossover contests. Paul seemed truly satisfied and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of the next day, he posted an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

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

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul expelled a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim summary of the night as Paul mixed blunt truth with blood-flecked bullshit and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper beating from one of the best to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to return and keep on winning."