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Jake Paul's jaw dropped agape, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the mat in shock and awe after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was trying to say "Whoa!" as the force of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

"The audience didn't pay to see this rubbish," said the referee, encapsulating the sorry spectacle far more succinctly than any observer else could.

Trapped in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely dazed moment.

So that is what it is like, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a genuine boxer, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the consequences of a proper power shot meant Paul would not be able to rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the contest over. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a dull ache spread through his jaw, Paul finally understood how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Commanding Victory for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing amid the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he made a cut-throat motion that suggested a precise and deadly finish when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the fight. Rather than exuding intimidation or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared hesitant and crude for nearly five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Without the gas to escape any longer, and reduced to slipping to the deck as often as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had seemed a sad shadow of the fighter he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"That was not the best performance," Joshua admitted. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. That has been the request, and that's what was on my mind. It took a little more time than expected, but the straight right finally reached its target."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own labored performance. "He faced a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his previous defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua tried out a poor imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the downward slope of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most interesting big men in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and the British prospect. 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 rising force. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the amount of rounds that Joshua required to send Paul into a appropriately wowed state.

Paul's Defiant Response

But the fans receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means more pitiful crossover contests. Paul appeared genuinely proud and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he posted an X-ray, with the pair of breaks marked in crimson.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a equally faded presence, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah remains undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else with whom he can make north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was another bleak symbol of the night as Paul mixed blunt truth with gory bravado and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A nice little beating from one of the greatest to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to return and continue winning."