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Jake Paul's mouth gaped wide open, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he sank to the mat in stunned disbelief after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was attempting to say "Wow!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this crap," said the referee, encapsulating the sorry spectacle much more succinctly than anyone else could.

Pinned in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not run 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 lost in an completely dazed moment.

So this is how it feels, and looks, to be hit hard by a real professional fighter, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- 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 proper power shot ensured Paul would not be able to get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the referee waved the charade over. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a numbing throb radiated through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how hard, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a decent standard of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Commanding Win for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a precise and lethal finish when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the fight. Instead of glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared tentative and crude for almost five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in top-level boxing, shaped the result. Without the gas to flee any longer, and resorting to falling to the canvas as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered helpless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the brutal finish, but, until then, he had looked like a sad shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the finest performance," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than expected, but the straight right finally found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he offered an explanation for his own stilted showing. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his previous loss. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I am eager to head into 2026."

The Future: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the press conference that followed, a cheerful Joshua attempted a poor imitation of his domestic rival as he demanded a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the undoubted ruler of the division, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rising force. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed less than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably wowed state.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Response

But the public receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional low-quality crossover fights. Paul seemed truly proud and brash to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of the next day, he shared an X-ray, with the two fractures highlighted in red.

That lighthearted reference to the Mexican superstar, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find another opponent with whom he can make north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more bleak summary of the evening as Paul mangled harsh reality with gory bravado and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little beating from one of the best to ever step in the ring. I adore this sport and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."