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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped agape, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief following a devastating right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was trying to say "Whoa!" as the force of the blow sank in to his rattled senses.

"The audience didn't pay to see this crap," said the referee, summing up the sorry spectacle much more succinctly than any observer else could.

Trapped in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that broke his jaw in two separate places, Paul was caught in an completely stunned moment.

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

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the result of a proper punch ensured Paul could not rise and taunt his opponent before the official called the charade to a halt. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a dull ache spread through his jaw, Paul finally grasped how difficult, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a decent standard of competition.

A Far From Commanding Win for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he made a cut-throat motion that hinted at a clinical and lethal execution when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared tentative and awkward for almost five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to escape any longer, and resorting to slipping to the canvas as often as he could for a rest, Paul was left helpless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the vicious finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a mournful imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Comments

"That was not the finest performance," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a little more time than anticipated, but the straight right finally reached its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own labored performance. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, referencing his last loss. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the post-fight interview that followed, a cheerful Joshua attempted a poor impression of Tyson Fury as he demanded a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that matchup comes much 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 Oleksandr Usyk and the British prospect. Usyk is still the unquestioned king of the division, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The young British heavyweight would probably have needed fewer than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a appropriately wowed state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Response

But the public receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful celebrity fights. Paul seemed truly proud and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he posted an radiograph, with the pair of breaks marked in red.

That lighthearted nod to the Mexican superstar, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a similarly diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more bleak symbol of the evening as Paul mixed blunt truth with blood-flecked bravado and said: "I believe 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 return and continue winning."