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Jake Paul's jaw dropped wide open, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he sank to the mat in stunned disbelief following a devastating right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was trying to say "Wow!" as the force of the blow sank in to his rattled senses.

"Those watching didn't spend money to see this crap," snapped the referee, summing up the sorry spectacle much more succinctly than any observer else could.

Trapped in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of boxing became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the shot that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was lost in an completely stunned moment.

So that is what it is like, and looks, to be hit hard by a real boxer, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the result of a clean punch meant Paul could not get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official waved the charade over. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul at last understood how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a decent level of competition.

A Far From Impressive Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing amid the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that suggested a clinical and lethal 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 tentative and awkward for almost five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Without the gas to flee any more, and resorting to falling to the canvas as often as he could for a breather, Paul was left helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Aftermath Comments

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to get 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 finally found its target."

Joshua praised Paul's bravery but he offered an explanation for his own stilted performance. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "We dusted 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 afterwards, a jovial Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he demanded a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the far side of the peak.

In contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned king of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The young British heavyweight would probably have needed fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a appropriately wowed stupor.

Paul's Unbowed Reaction

But the public gets what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means more low-quality celebrity fights. Paul appeared truly satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of the next day, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks marked in red.

That jokey nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a similarly diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's brazen audacity is undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find another opponent with whom he can make north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was another bleak summary of the night as Paul mixed harsh reality with gory bravado and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A nice little beating from one of the greatest to ever do it. I love this sport and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."