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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped agape, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief after a pulverising right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was attempting to utter "Wow!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

"Those watching didn't spend money to see this rubbish," said the referee, summing up the dismal affair far more succinctly than any observer else could.

Pinned in a neutral 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 fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was lost in an utterly dazed moment.

So that is what it feels, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a real professional fighter, an Olympic champion and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the result of a clean punch meant Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official waved the charade over. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul finally grasped how difficult, grueling, and perilous boxing is at a decent standard of competition.

A Far From Commanding Win for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing amid the chaos. After his hollow victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a clinical and lethal execution when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the contest. Instead of exuding intimidation or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared tentative and awkward for nearly five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the result. Lacking the stamina to flee any longer, and reduced to slipping to the canvas as often as he could for a breather, Paul was left defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the vicious finish, but, until then, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the fighter he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Aftermath Comments

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

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

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the post-fight interview that followed, a jovial Joshua tried out a poor impression of Tyson Fury as he demanded a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that matchup comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the undoubted king of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed fewer than half the number of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a appropriately astonished stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Response

But the fans receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means more pitiful crossover fights. Paul appeared truly satisfied and brash to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That lighthearted reference to the Mexican superstar, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate another opponent with whom he can make north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before departing to the hospital, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more grim summary of the night as Paul mixed harsh reality with gory bravado and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little beating from one of the best to ever step in the ring. I adore this sport and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."