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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped wide open, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the mat in stunned disbelief following a devastating right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was trying to say "Whoa!" as the force of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this crap," said the referee, encapsulating the dismal affair much more effectively than anyone else could.

Pinned in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an utterly dazed moment.

So this is how it is like, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a real boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the consequences of a proper punch ensured Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the referee waved the contest to a halt. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a dull ache spread through his jaw, Paul finally understood how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Win for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive during the bedlam. After his empty victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a precise and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the fight. Instead of glowering with menace or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared tentative and awkward for almost five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, shaped the result. Without the gas to flee any longer, and reduced to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the brutal finish, but, until then, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Comments

"That was not the finest display," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. 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 found its target."

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

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of his domestic rival as he called for a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably get his wish, but that bout comes much too late in their careers. Both men are on the far side of the peak.

In contrast, the most interesting big men in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and the British prospect. Usyk is still the undoubted ruler of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

Paul's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans receives what the public wants, and that certainly means additional low-quality crossover fights. Paul appeared truly proud and cocky 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 lighthearted nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly faded force, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah remains unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find someone else with whom he can make north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was another grim summary of the evening as Paul mixed harsh reality with gory bravado and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little beating from one of the greatest to ever step in the ring. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."