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Jake Paul's jaw dropped wide open, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers 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 "Whoa!" as the severity of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

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

Trapped in a 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 gravity of boxing became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that broke his jaw in two separate places, Paul was lost in an utterly stunned moment.

So this is how it is like, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a real boxer, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is certainly the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the consequences of a clean power shot ensured Paul could not get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the contest over. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a numbing throb radiated through his jawbone, Paul finally grasped how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Win for Joshua

Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing amid the chaos. After his hollow victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that suggested a precise and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the fight. Rather than exuding intimidation or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared tentative 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 longer, and reduced to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, until then, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Comments

"That was not the finest display," Joshua admitted. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than expected, but the right hand finally found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an explanation for his own stilted showing. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "We dusted off the rust, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua tried out a poor impression of his domestic rival as he demanded a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the downward slope of the hill.

In contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world are the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk remains the unquestioned king of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have required less than half the number of rounds that Joshua required to send Paul into a appropriately astonished stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Response

But the fans receives what the public wants, and that certainly means additional pitiful crossover contests. Paul seemed genuinely proud and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of the next day, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That jokey nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a equally diminished force, 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 north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim summary of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with blood-flecked bravado and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and continue winning."