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Jake Paul's mouth gaped wide open, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he sank to the mat in stunned disbelief after a pulverising 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.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this garbage," said the referee, summing up the sorry affair far more succinctly than anyone else could.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not run or hold on to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an utterly stunned moment.

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

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the consequences of a proper punch ensured Paul could not get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the referee called the contest over. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a dull ache spread through his jaw, Paul at last understood how hard, grueling, and perilous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Impressive Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing amid the chaos. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a clinical and lethal execution when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the fight. Rather than exuding intimidation or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed tentative and awkward for almost five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Without the gas to escape any more, and reduced to falling to the deck as often as he could for a rest, Paul was left helpless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, until then, he had seemed a mournful imitation of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua admitted. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the request, and that's what was on my mind. It took a little more time than anticipated, but the straight right 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 defeat. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I am eager to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview that followed, a cheerful Joshua tried out a poor impression of his domestic rival as he called for a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world are the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk is still the unquestioned king of the division, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The young British heavyweight would probably have needed fewer than half the number of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

Paul's Defiant Response

But the public receives what the public wants, and that certainly means additional pitiful celebrity fights. Paul seemed genuinely satisfied and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a sledgehammer right. In the early hours of the next day, he posted an radiograph, with the pair of breaks marked in red.

That lighthearted reference to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly diminished presence, showed that Paul's brazen audacity remains unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find another opponent with whom he can make more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more grim symbol of the evening as Paul mixed harsh reality with gory bravado and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the greatest to ever step in the ring. I love this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."