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Jake Paul's jaw dropped agape, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief following a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was attempting to utter "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact registered to his scrambled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this crap," said the referee, encapsulating the sorry spectacle much more effectively than anyone else managed to.

Trapped in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the shot that broke his jaw in two separate places, Paul was caught in an completely dazed moment.

So this is how it feels, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a genuine professional fighter, an Olympic champion and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been sent to the floor, but the consequences of a proper power shot ensured Paul could not get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the contest to a halt. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul finally grasped how difficult, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive amid the chaos. After his hollow victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a clinical and lethal finish when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the contest. Rather than glowering with menace or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed hesitant and crude for almost five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in elite boxing, shaped the outcome. Without the gas to flee any longer, and reduced to slipping to the deck as often as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the vicious ending, but, until then, he had seemed a mournful imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Comments

"It wasn't the best display," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than expected, but the straight right finally found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an explanation for his own labored performance. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his last defeat. "We shook off the rust, and I can't wait to roll into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview that followed, a cheerful Joshua attempted 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 bout comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the downward slope of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting big men in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and the British prospect. Usyk remains the undoubted king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising force. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have required fewer than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua required to knock Paul into a appropriately wowed stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Response

But the fans gets what the public desires, and that certainly means additional low-quality celebrity contests. Paul appeared truly proud and brash to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he posted an radiograph, with the pair of breaks marked in crimson.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly faded presence, showed that Paul's brazen audacity remains unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find another opponent with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the medical facility, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more bleak symbol of the night as Paul mangled blunt truth with gory bravado and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper beating from one of the greatest to ever step in the ring. I adore this shit and I'm going to return and continue winning."