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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped wide open, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he sank to the canvas in shock and awe after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the force of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

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

Trapped in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was caught in an completely stunned moment.

So this is how it is like, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a real professional fighter, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the consequences of a clean punch meant Paul could not get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the contest to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a dull ache radiated through his jawbone, Paul at last grasped how hard, grueling, and perilous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Commanding Win for Joshua

Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive amid the chaos. After his empty victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a clinical and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared tentative and awkward for almost five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, shaped the outcome. Lacking the stamina to flee any more, and resorting to falling to the canvas as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal finish, but, until then, he had looked like a sad shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Assessment

"That was not the best display," Joshua conceded. "The objective 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 anticipated, but the right hand finally reached its target."

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

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the press conference that followed, a jovial Joshua tried out a woeful impression of Tyson Fury 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 men are on the far side of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most interesting big men in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and the British prospect. Usyk remains the unquestioned ruler of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed less than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably wowed state.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Reaction

But the fans receives what the public desires, and that certainly means more pitiful crossover contests. Paul appeared truly 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 radiograph, with the two fractures highlighted in crimson.

That lighthearted reference to the Mexican superstar, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a equally faded presence, showed that Paul's brazen audacity remains undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate another opponent with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before departing to the medical facility, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim symbol of the evening as Paul mixed blunt truth with gory bravado and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper beating from one of the greatest to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."