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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped wide open, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in shock and awe after a pulverising right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was trying to utter "Wow!" as the force of the blow registered to his rattled senses.

"Those watching didn't pay to see this crap," snapped the referee, encapsulating the dismal affair far more succinctly than anyone else could.

Pinned in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or hold on to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was lost in an completely dazed moment.

So that is what it is like, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a real boxer, an Olympic champion and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the result of a clean power shot ensured Paul would not be able to rise and taunt his opponent before the referee waved the charade over. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a dull ache radiated through his jaw, Paul at last grasped how hard, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a respectable standard of competition.

An Unimpressive Impressive Win for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive during the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a clinical and deadly execution when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the contest. Rather than glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared hesitant and awkward for almost five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, shaped the result. Lacking the stamina to flee any more, and resorting to falling to the deck as often as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the brutal ending, but, until then, he had seemed a mournful shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Comments

"That was not the finest performance," Joshua admitted. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than expected, but the right hand finally found its target."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he added an explanation for his own labored performance. "He faced a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his previous defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of his domestic rival as he demanded a fight 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 downward slope of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and the British prospect. Usyk is still the undoubted king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rising talent. The young British heavyweight likely have needed less than half the amount of rounds that Joshua required to send Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Response

But the fans gets what the public desires, and that certainly means more pitiful celebrity fights. Paul appeared truly satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he posted an X-ray, with the two fractures highlighted in red.

That jokey nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a equally diminished force, showed that Paul's brazen audacity remains unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate another opponent with whom he can make more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the medical facility, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim symbol of the night as Paul mixed harsh reality with blood-flecked bravado 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 shit and I'm going to return and keep on winning."