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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped agape, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he sank to the mat in stunned disbelief following a devastating right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his scrambled senses.

"The audience didn't pay to see this garbage," said the referee, encapsulating the dismal affair far more effectively than any observer else could.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the gravity of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an completely stunned moment.

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

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the consequences of a clean power shot ensured Paul could not rise and taunt his opponent before the referee waved the contest over. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a numbing throb spread through his jaw, Paul at last grasped how hard, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a decent standard of competition.

A Far From Commanding Win for the Victor

Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive during the chaos. After his empty victory, he made a cut-throat motion that hinted at a clinical and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared hesitant and awkward for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, shaped the result. Without the gas to escape any longer, and reduced to falling to the canvas as often as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a sad shadow of the fighter he was in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Comments

"It wasn't the finest display," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than expected, but the straight right finally found its target."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he offered an explanation for his own stilted performance. "He faced a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his previous loss. "We dusted off the rust, and I can't wait to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a poor impression of Tyson Fury as he called for a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the far side of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most compelling big men in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the undoubted ruler of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rising talent. The young British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the amount of rounds that Joshua required to knock Paul into a appropriately astonished stupor.

Paul's Defiant Reaction

But the fans receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional low-quality celebrity contests. Paul seemed truly satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he shared an X-ray, with the two fractures marked in crimson.

That jokey reference to the Mexican superstar, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a similarly diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah is undented. It might 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 leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was another grim symbol of the night as Paul mangled blunt truth with gory bullshit and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I love this sport and I'm going to return and keep on winning."