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Jake Paul's jaw dropped wide open, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he collapsed to the mat in stunned disbelief after a devastating right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the force of the impact registered to his scrambled senses.

"Those watching didn't pay to see this rubbish," said the referee, encapsulating the sorry affair far more succinctly than any observer else could.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the gravity of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the shot that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was caught in an completely stunned moment.

So this is how it feels, and looks, to be hit hard by a genuine professional fighter, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the result of a proper 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 jaw, Paul at last grasped how hard, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of professionalism.

A Far From Commanding Win for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing amid the chaos. After his hollow victory, he made a cut-throat motion that hinted at a clinical and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the contest. Rather than exuding intimidation or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed tentative and crude for almost five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in top-level boxing, shaped the outcome. Without the gas to escape any more, and resorting to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was left defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal finish, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful imitation of the fighter he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the finest performance," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to get 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 found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an excuse for his own labored showing. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his last defeat. "We dusted off the cobwebs, 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 poor imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the downward slope of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world are the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk is still the unquestioned king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the amount of rounds that Joshua required to send Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Reaction

But the public receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means more low-quality celebrity contests. Paul seemed genuinely satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he shared an X-ray, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That lighthearted nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a equally diminished presence, showed that Paul's brazen audacity is unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else 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 canvas. It was one more bleak summary of the night as Paul mangled blunt truth with gory bullshit and said: "I think 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 sport and I'm going to return and keep on winning."