🔗 Share this article

The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped agape, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the mat in shock and awe after a devastating right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

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

Trapped in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was lost in an utterly stunned moment.

So this is how it is like, and looks, to be hit hard by a real boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the consequences of a clean punch meant Paul would not be able to rise and taunt his opponent before the official waved the charade to a halt. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Victory for the Victor

Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the bedlam. After his empty victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that suggested a clinical and deadly finish when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the contest. Rather than exuding intimidation or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed hesitant and awkward for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, dictated the result. Lacking the stamina to flee any more, and reduced to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the vicious ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Assessment

"It wasn't the finest performance," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the right hand finally reached its target."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he offered an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his previous defeat. "We shook off the rust, and I can't wait to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview that followed, a cheerful Joshua attempted a woeful impression of Tyson Fury as he demanded a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the far side of the peak.

In contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed fewer than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Reaction

But the public receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional low-quality celebrity contests. Paul appeared genuinely satisfied and brash to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of the next day, he shared an X-ray, with the pair of breaks marked in crimson.

That jokey nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a similarly diminished presence, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah is unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul expelled a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was another bleak summary of the evening as Paul mangled harsh reality with blood-flecked bullshit and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A nice little beating from one of the greatest to ever step in the ring. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."