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Jake Paul's jaw dropped agape, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he sank to the canvas in shock and awe after a pulverising right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to utter "Wow!" as the severity of the blow registered to his rattled senses.

"Those watching didn't pay to see this garbage," said the referee, summing up the dismal affair far more succinctly than anyone else managed to.

Trapped in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not run or hold on to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the gravity of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an utterly dazed moment.

So that is what it feels, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a real boxer, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed 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 called the charade over. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a numbing throb spread through his jaw, Paul finally understood how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a decent standard of competition.

A Far From Commanding Victory for Joshua

Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing during the chaos. After his hollow victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that suggested a precise and deadly finish when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the fight. Rather than exuding intimidation or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared hesitant and crude for almost five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, dictated the result. Without the gas to escape any more, and resorting to falling to the deck as often as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a sad imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"That was not the finest display," Joshua admitted. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than anticipated, but the straight right eventually found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he added an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He faced a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his last defeat. "We dusted off the rust, and I am eager to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the press conference that followed, a cheerful Joshua tried out a woeful impression of Tyson Fury as he demanded a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that matchup comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the peak.

In contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the undoubted ruler of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua required to knock Paul into a suitably wowed state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Response

But the fans gets what the public desires, and that certainly means additional pitiful celebrity contests. Paul seemed genuinely satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he shared an X-ray, with the pair of breaks marked in crimson.

That lighthearted nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a equally faded presence, showed that Paul's brazen audacity remains undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more bleak summary of the night as Paul mixed harsh reality with gory bravado and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper beating from one of the best to ever do it. I adore this sport and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."