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Jake Paul's jaw dropped wide open, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was attempting to say "Wow!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his scrambled senses.

"Those watching didn't pay to see this rubbish," snapped the referee, encapsulating the sorry affair much more effectively than any observer else could.

Trapped in a neutral 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 became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely dazed moment.

So this is how it feels, and appears, to be hit hard by a real boxer, an Olympic champion and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been sent to the floor, but the result of a proper power shot meant Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the contest to a halt. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a numbing throb radiated through his jaw, Paul finally understood how difficult, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Commanding Win for the Victor

Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing amid the chaos. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at 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 unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed hesitant and crude for almost five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in top-level boxing, dictated the result. Without the gas to escape any longer, and resorting to falling to the canvas as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a mournful shadow of the fighter he was in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Assessment

"That was not the best display," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than expected, but the straight right 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 fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his last defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview that followed, a cheerful Joshua attempted a poor impression of his domestic rival as he called for a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their careers. Both men are on the far side of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most interesting big men in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the undoubted ruler of the division, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a appropriately wowed stupor.

Paul's Unbowed Response

But the fans gets what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful crossover fights. Paul seemed truly proud and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of the next day, he posted an radiograph, with the two fractures highlighted in red.

That lighthearted reference to the Mexican superstar, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, showed that Paul's brazen audacity remains unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else with whom he can make more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was another bleak summary of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with gory bullshit and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper beating from one of the best to ever do it. I adore this sport and I'm going to come back and continue winning."