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Jake Paul's mouth gaped agape, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he collapsed to the canvas in stunned disbelief after a devastating right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was trying to utter "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his scrambled senses.

"The fans didn't pay to see this rubbish," snapped the referee, summing up the sorry spectacle far more succinctly than anyone else managed to.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or hold on to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an utterly dazed moment.

So this is how it is like, and appears, to be hit hard by a genuine professional fighter, an Olympic champion 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 power shot ensured Paul would not be able to get up and taunt his opponent before the referee called the contest over. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a dull ache radiated through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how hard, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

A Far From Commanding Victory for Joshua

Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing amid the chaos. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a precise and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the fight. Instead of exuding intimidation or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed hesitant and awkward for almost five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, shaped the result. Without the gas to flee any more, and resorting to falling to the canvas as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had seemed a mournful shadow of the fighter he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Comments

"That was not the best display," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the right hand finally found its target."

Joshua praised Paul's bravery but he offered an explanation for his own labored showing. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his last loss. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I am eager to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the press conference that followed, a cheerful Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of his domestic rival as he demanded a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that matchup comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most compelling big men in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the undoubted king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua required to knock Paul into a suitably astonished state.

Paul's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans receives what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful celebrity contests. Paul seemed truly satisfied and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a sledgehammer right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the two fractures 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 brazen audacity is unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate another opponent with whom he can make north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before departing to the medical facility, Paul expelled a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was one more bleak symbol of the evening as Paul mixed harsh reality with gory bravado and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."