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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped agape, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief following a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was trying to say "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact registered to his rattled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this rubbish," said the referee, summing up the sorry spectacle far more effectively than anyone else could.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an utterly stunned moment.

So this is how it feels, and appears, to be hit hard by a real boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the consequences of a clean punch 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 numbing throb radiated through his jaw, Paul finally understood how hard, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Impressive Victory for the Victor

Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing amid the chaos. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a precise and deadly execution when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the fight. 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 top-level boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to escape any more, and reduced to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a sad imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Assessment

"That was not the best performance," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than expected, but the straight right eventually reached its target."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own labored showing. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his previous loss. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I am eager to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a jovial Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of his domestic rival 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 far side of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world are the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk is still the unquestioned king 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 likely have needed fewer than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

Paul's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans receives what the public desires, and that certainly means additional pitiful celebrity contests. Paul seemed truly satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That lighthearted nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a equally faded force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate someone else 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 canvas. It was another bleak symbol of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with blood-flecked bullshit and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper beating from one of the greatest to ever step in the ring. I love this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."