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Jake Paul's mouth gaped wide open, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in shock and awe after a pulverising right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was trying to utter "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact registered to his rattled senses.

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

Trapped in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an utterly stunned moment.

So that is what it feels, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a real boxer, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, 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 charade to a halt. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a numbing throb radiated through his jaw, Paul finally understood how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of professionalism.

A Far From Commanding Win for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the chaos. After his empty victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that suggested a clinical and deadly execution when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the contest. Rather than exuding intimidation or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared hesitant and awkward for almost five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the result. Lacking the stamina to flee any longer, and resorting to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal finish, but, until then, he had seemed a mournful shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Comments

"That was not the best performance," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than anticipated, but the right hand eventually reached its target."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he offered an explanation for his own stilted performance. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "We dusted off the rust, and I am eager to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and New Talent

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

In stark contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned ruler of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The young British heavyweight would probably have needed fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua required to send Paul into a appropriately wowed stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Reaction

But the fans gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful crossover fights. Paul seemed truly satisfied and brash to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks marked in red.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a equally diminished force, showed that Paul's brazen audacity is unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate another opponent with whom he can make more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was another bleak summary of the night as Paul mixed blunt truth with blood-flecked bullshit and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little ass-whipping from one of the greatest to ever step in the ring. I love this sport and I'm going to return and keep on winning."