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

"Those watching didn't pay to see this garbage," said the referee, summing up the dismal spectacle much more effectively than any observer else managed to.

Trapped in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or hold on to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the gravity of boxing became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the shot that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely stunned moment.

So this is how it feels, and looks, to be hit hard by a genuine professional fighter, an Olympic gold medallist 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 meant Paul would not be able to get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the charade to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jaw, Paul finally grasped how difficult, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of competition.

An Unimpressive Commanding Win for the Victor

Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive during the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a clinical and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the contest. Instead of glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed tentative and crude for nearly five stanzas.

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 reduced to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal finish, but, up to that point, he had looked like a sad shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the best display," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a little more time than anticipated, but the right hand eventually found its target."

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

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful impression of Tyson Fury as he called for a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that bout comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most compelling big men in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned king of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising force. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the number of rounds that Joshua required to send Paul into a suitably wowed state.

Paul's Unbowed Reaction

But the public gets what the public desires, and that certainly means additional pitiful celebrity contests. Paul appeared genuinely proud and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of the next day, he posted an X-ray, with the two fractures highlighted in crimson.

That lighthearted nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah is undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more grim symbol of the night as Paul mixed blunt truth with blood-flecked bravado 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 continue winning."