🔗 Share this article

The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped wide open, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief after a devastating right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was trying to say "Wow!" as the severity of the impact registered to his scrambled senses.

"Those watching didn't spend money to see this garbage," snapped the referee, encapsulating the sorry spectacle much more succinctly than anyone else managed to.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not run or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an completely dazed moment.

So that is what it is like, and looks, to be hit hard by a genuine boxer, an Olympic champion and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the result of a clean power shot meant Paul would not be able to rise and taunt his opponent before the referee called the charade over. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a dull ache radiated through his jawbone, Paul at last understood how hard, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Commanding Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive during the chaos. After his empty victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that hinted at a precise and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the contest. Instead of glowering with menace or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed hesitant and awkward for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, shaped the outcome. Lacking the stamina to escape any more, and reduced to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered helpless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the vicious finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a sad shadow of the fighter he was in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Comments

"It wasn't the best display," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the straight right eventually reached its target."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he added an explanation for his own stilted performance. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his previous defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the press conference that followed, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of his domestic rival as he called for a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting big men in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned ruler of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising talent. The young British heavyweight likely have needed fewer than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

Paul's Defiant Reaction

But the fans receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful crossover contests. Paul appeared genuinely proud and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he posted an X-ray, with the pair of breaks highlighted in crimson.

That jokey nod to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a equally faded force, demonstrated that Paul's brazen audacity is undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find someone else with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was another grim summary of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with blood-flecked bravado and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper ass-whipping 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."