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Jake Paul's mouth gaped agape, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the mat in stunned disbelief after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was attempting to utter "Whoa!" as the severity of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this crap," snapped the referee, summing up the sorry affair far more succinctly than any observer else could.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not run or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the gravity of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the shot that broke his jaw in two separate places, Paul was lost in an completely dazed moment.

So that is what it is like, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a genuine 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 knocked down, but the result of a proper punch ensured Paul would not be able to rise and taunt his opponent before the referee waved the charade to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a dull ache radiated through his jaw, Paul at last grasped how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of competition.

An Unimpressive Impressive Victory for Joshua

Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his empty victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a precise and deadly execution when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the contest. Instead of exuding intimidation or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared hesitant and awkward for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, dictated the outcome. Without the gas to escape any longer, and resorting to slipping to the canvas as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the brutal finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a sad imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Comments

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua admitted. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than expected, but the right hand eventually reached its target."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he added an explanation for his own stilted showing. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his last defeat. "We dusted off the rust, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview that followed, a jovial Joshua tried out a woeful impression of his domestic rival as he demanded a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. 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 Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the undoubted king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The young British heavyweight would probably have needed fewer than half the number of rounds that Joshua required to send Paul into a appropriately wowed state.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Response

But the public gets what the public desires, and that certainly means more low-quality crossover contests. Paul appeared truly proud and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he shared an X-ray, with the two fractures highlighted in red.

That lighthearted reference to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a similarly faded presence, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah is unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find someone else with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul expelled a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was another bleak symbol of the evening as Paul mangled blunt truth with gory bravado and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I adore this sport and I'm going to come back and continue winning."