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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped wide open, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the mat in stunned disbelief after a devastating right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was trying to utter "Whoa!" as the force of the impact registered to his rattled senses.

"Those watching didn't pay to see this rubbish," said the referee, encapsulating the dismal spectacle far more succinctly than any observer else managed to.

Trapped in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the gravity of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the shot 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 hit hard by a real professional fighter, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the consequences of a clean punch ensured Paul would not be able to rise and taunt his opponent before the referee waved the charade to a halt. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a numbing throb radiated through his jawbone, Paul at last grasped how hard, grueling, and perilous boxing is at a decent standard of competition.

A Far From Impressive Win for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing amid the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he made a cut-throat motion that hinted at a clinical and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the fight. Instead of exuding intimidation or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed hesitant and awkward for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, dictated the result. Lacking the stamina to flee any longer, and resorting to falling to the canvas as often as he could for a rest, Paul was left helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, until then, he had seemed a sad imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Assessment

"That was not the finest display," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the request, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the straight right eventually found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he offered an explanation for his own stilted showing. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his last loss. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a jovial Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of his domestic rival as he demanded a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that matchup comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting big men in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned ruler of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rising force. The young British heavyweight would probably have required fewer than half the number of rounds that Joshua required to send Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Response

But the public gets what the public wants, and that certainly means additional pitiful celebrity fights. Paul appeared truly satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the early hours of the next day, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That lighthearted reference to the Mexican superstar, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a equally faded force, demonstrated that Paul's brazen audacity is unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was another grim summary of the night as Paul mangled 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 best to ever do it. I love this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."