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Jake Paul's jaw dropped wide open, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he collapsed 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 force of the blow registered to his rattled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this garbage," said the referee, summing up the sorry spectacle much more effectively than anyone else managed to.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not run or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that broke his jaw in two separate places, Paul was lost in an utterly dazed moment.

So that is what it feels, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a real professional fighter, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" 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 would not be able to rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the referee called the contest over. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a numbing throb radiated through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how difficult, grueling, and perilous boxing is at a respectable standard of competition.

An Unimpressive Impressive Win for Joshua

Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive during the chaos. After his empty victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that suggested a clinical and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the fight. Rather than exuding intimidation or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared tentative and crude for almost five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, shaped the result. Lacking the stamina to flee any more, and resorting to slipping to the canvas as often as he could for a breather, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a sad shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight 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 plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than expected, but the right hand eventually found its destination."

Joshua praised Paul's bravery but he offered an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his previous loss. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a jovial Joshua tried out a poor imitation of Tyson Fury as he demanded a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that matchup comes far too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most compelling big men in the world remain the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk remains the unquestioned ruler of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight likely have required fewer than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to send Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Response

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

That lighthearted reference to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, showed that Paul's brazen audacity remains undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim symbol 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 return and keep on winning."