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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped agape, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he collapsed to the mat in stunned disbelief following a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was attempting to say "Wow!" as the severity of the blow sank in to his scrambled senses.

"Those watching didn't pay to see this garbage," snapped the referee, summing up the dismal affair far more succinctly than any observer else managed to.

Trapped in a 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 tried to absorb the shot that broke his jaw in two separate places, Paul was caught in an utterly dazed moment.

So this is how it is like, and appears, to be hit hard by a real boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the consequences of a proper punch meant Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the official called the contest over. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a numbing throb radiated through his jawbone, Paul at last grasped how difficult, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

A Far From Commanding Victory for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he made a cut-throat motion that suggested a precise and lethal finish when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the contest. Instead of exuding intimidation or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed tentative and crude for nearly five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, shaped the result. Without the gas to flee any longer, and resorting to slipping to the canvas as often as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful imitation of the boxer he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Aftermath Comments

"That was not the best display," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than expected, but the straight right finally found its destination."

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

The Future: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the press conference afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful impression of his domestic rival as he demanded a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably get his wish, but that matchup comes far too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the hill.

In contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned ruler 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 rounds that Joshua required to send Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Reaction

But the public receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful celebrity contests. Paul seemed genuinely satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of the next day, he posted an radiograph, with the two fractures marked in red.

That lighthearted reference to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a equally diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate another opponent with whom he can make more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was another bleak symbol of the evening as Paul mixed blunt truth with gory bullshit and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little ass-whipping from one of the best to ever step in the ring. I love this shit and I'm going to return and continue winning."