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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 the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to utter "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this rubbish," snapped the referee, summing up the sorry affair much more effectively than any observer else managed to.

Pinned in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or hold on to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the gravity of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the punch that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an utterly dazed moment.

So that is what it feels, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a real 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 punch ensured Paul could not get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the referee waved the contest to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a dull ache spread through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive during the chaos. After his empty victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that hinted at a clinical and deadly execution when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared hesitant and awkward for almost five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to flee any longer, and resorting to falling to the deck as often as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the brutal ending, but, until then, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the fighter he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the finest display," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to catch 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 eventually found its target."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own labored showing. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, referencing his last loss. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview that followed, a cheerful Joshua attempted a woeful impression of his domestic rival as he called for a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the peak.

In contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned ruler of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to send Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Response

But the public gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful celebrity contests. Paul seemed truly proud and brash to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the two fractures highlighted in red.

That lighthearted nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a equally faded presence, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah is unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate someone else with whom he can make north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was one more bleak symbol of the evening as Paul mangled blunt truth with blood-flecked bravado and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I love this sport and I'm going to return and continue winning."