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Jake Paul's mouth gaped wide open, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was trying to utter "Whoa!" as the force of the impact registered to his rattled senses.

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

Pinned in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely stunned moment.

So that is what it feels, and looks, to be hit hard by a genuine 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 sent to the floor, but the result of a clean power shot ensured Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official waved the contest over. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a numbing throb radiated through his jaw, Paul finally grasped how difficult, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent level of competition.

An Unimpressive Impressive Victory for Joshua

Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing amid the chaos. After his hollow victory, he made a cut-throat motion that suggested a clinical and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the contest. Rather than glowering with menace or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed tentative and awkward for almost five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to flee any more, and resorting to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the vicious finish, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a little more time than anticipated, but the right hand eventually reached its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an explanation for his own labored performance. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his last loss. "We dusted off the rust, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview that followed, a cheerful Joshua tried out a poor impression of Tyson Fury as he called for a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably 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 compelling heavyweights in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and the British prospect. Usyk is still the undoubted king of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising force. The young British heavyweight would probably have required fewer than half the number of rounds that Joshua required to send Paul into a suitably astonished state.

Paul's Unbowed Response

But the public receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional low-quality crossover fights. Paul appeared genuinely proud and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a sledgehammer right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he posted an radiograph, with the two fractures marked in red.

That jokey reference to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a equally faded force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah is undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find another opponent with whom he can make more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was one more bleak summary of the night as Paul mangled blunt truth with gory bravado and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A nice little 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."