Jake Paul's jaw dropped wide open, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he collapsed to the canvas in shock and awe after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the force of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.
"Those watching didn't spend money to see this rubbish," said the referee, summing up the dismal spectacle far more effectively than any observer else managed to.
Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or hold on to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely stunned moment.
So that is what it is like, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a genuine professional fighter, an Olympic gold medallist and former 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 consequences of a proper punch meant Paul could not get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the referee called the charade to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul at last understood how hard, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a decent standard of competition.
An Unimpressive Commanding Win for Joshua
Anthony 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 reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the fight. Instead of glowering with menace or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared tentative and awkward for nearly five stanzas.
Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, dictated the result. Lacking the stamina to flee any longer, and resorting to slipping to the canvas as often as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the vicious ending, but, until then, he had seemed a mournful shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.
The Winner's Aftermath Assessment
"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the right hand eventually reached its target."
Joshua praised Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own stilted showing. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his previous loss. "We shook off the rust, and I am eager to roll into 2026."
What Comes Next: Faded Forces and Rising Stars
In the press conference that followed, a jovial Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that matchup comes far too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the far side of the peak.
In contrast, the most compelling big men in the world remain the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk is still the undoubted ruler of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have required less than half the number of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.
The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Response
But the fans receives what the public desires, and that certainly means more low-quality celebrity contests. Paul seemed genuinely proud and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a sledgehammer right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the two fractures highlighted in crimson.
That jokey reference to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find someone else with whom he can make more than $50 million.
During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was another grim symbol of the evening as Paul mixed blunt truth with blood-flecked bravado and stated: "I think 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."