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Jake Paul's mouth gaped wide open, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief after a pulverising right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was trying to say "Wow!" as the severity of the blow registered to his rattled senses.

"Those watching didn't pay to see this crap," snapped the referee, encapsulating the sorry spectacle far more succinctly than any observer else could.

Trapped in a 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 gravity of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was caught in an completely dazed moment.

So that is what it feels, and looks, to be hit hard 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 proper power shot ensured Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official waved the contest over. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a dull ache radiated through his jawbone, Paul at last grasped how hard, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a decent standard of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Win for Joshua

Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the chaos. After his empty victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a clinical and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the contest. Rather than glowering with menace or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed hesitant and awkward for almost five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the result. Lacking the stamina to flee any more, and resorting to falling to the canvas 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 seemed a sad shadow of the fighter he was in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Comments

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua conceded. "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 little more time than anticipated, but the right hand eventually reached its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he offered an excuse for his own labored performance. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his previous loss. "We dusted off the rust, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the press conference afterwards, a jovial Joshua tried out a woeful impression of his domestic rival as he demanded a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the far side of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the undoubted king of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising talent. The young British heavyweight likely have required less than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably astonished state.

Paul's Defiant Reaction

But the public gets what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful celebrity fights. Paul appeared genuinely proud and brash to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he posted an X-ray, with the two fractures highlighted in crimson.

That jokey reference to the Mexican superstar, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a similarly faded force, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah is unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more grim symbol of the evening as Paul mangled blunt truth with blood-flecked bullshit and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A nice little beating from one of the greatest to ever step in the ring. I love this sport and I'm going to return and continue winning."