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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped agape, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he sank to the mat in shock and awe following a pulverising right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to say "Wow!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

"The fans didn't pay to see this rubbish," said the referee, summing up the dismal affair much more effectively than any observer else could.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not run or hold on to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was lost in an utterly dazed moment.

So this is how it feels, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is certainly the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the result of a proper punch meant Paul would not be able to rise and taunt his opponent before the referee called the contest over. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul at last grasped how difficult, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

A Far From Commanding Win for Joshua

Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a clinical and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the fight. Instead of exuding intimidation or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared 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 flee any longer, and resorting to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the vicious finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a mournful shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Assessment

"That was not the finest performance," 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 mind. It took a little more time than expected, but the right hand eventually reached its target."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his last defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I am eager to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview that followed, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful impression of Tyson Fury as he called for a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the far side of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a appropriately wowed state.

Paul's Defiant Reaction

But the fans receives what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means additional low-quality crossover fights. Paul appeared truly satisfied and brash to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the early hours of the next day, he posted an radiograph, with the two fractures marked in red.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly faded force, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah remains undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the hospital, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more bleak symbol of the evening as Paul mangled blunt truth with gory bullshit and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little beating from one of the greatest to ever do it. I love this sport and I'm going to return and continue winning."