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Jake Paul's mouth gaped agape, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he sank to the canvas in shock and awe following a devastating right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was trying to utter "Whoa!" as the force of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this garbage," said the referee, summing up the sorry affair much more effectively than anyone else could.

Trapped in a corner of the ring midway through 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 enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the shot that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was caught in an utterly dazed moment.

So that is what it feels, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a real professional fighter, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the consequences of a proper power shot ensured Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the charade over. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a numbing throb radiated through his jawbone, Paul finally grasped how difficult, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent level of competition.

A Far From Impressive Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing amid the chaos. After his empty victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that suggested a precise and lethal finish when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the contest. Rather than exuding intimidation or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed hesitant and awkward for nearly five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in top-level boxing, shaped the outcome. Lacking the stamina to flee any more, and reduced to falling to the canvas as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had seemed a mournful imitation of the fighter he was in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Comments

"That was not the best display," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than anticipated, but the straight right finally found its target."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he offered an excuse for his own labored showing. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

The Future: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the press conference that followed, a cheerful Joshua attempted a poor imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that matchup comes much too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the far side of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned ruler of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rising talent. The young British heavyweight would probably have required less than half the number of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Reaction

But the public gets what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means more pitiful celebrity fights. Paul seemed truly satisfied and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That jokey nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a similarly faded force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find someone else with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before departing to the hospital, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim symbol of the night as Paul mixed blunt truth 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 return and keep on winning."