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Jake Paul's mouth gaped agape, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief after a devastating right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to say "Wow!" as the force of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this garbage," snapped the referee, encapsulating the dismal affair far more succinctly than any observer else managed to.

Pinned in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the gravity of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an utterly stunned moment.

So this is how it feels, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been sent to the floor, but the result of a proper punch meant Paul would not be able to rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the referee waved the charade over. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a dull ache spread through his jaw, Paul finally grasped how hard, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Impressive Win for the Victor

Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive during the chaos. After his hollow victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a precise and deadly finish when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed tentative and crude for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to escape any more, and resorting to falling to the canvas as often as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had seemed a sad shadow of the boxer he was in 2017.

The Winner's Aftermath Comments

"That was not the best performance," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. 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 commended Paul's courage but he offered an explanation for his own stilted showing. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his previous loss. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he demanded a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that matchup comes far too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the peak.

In contrast, the most interesting big men in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the undoubted ruler of the division, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have required less than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a appropriately astonished stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Reaction

But the public gets what the public desires, and that certainly means more pitiful celebrity contests. Paul appeared truly satisfied and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of the next day, he posted an X-ray, with the two fractures highlighted in crimson.

That jokey reference to the Mexican superstar, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a similarly faded force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find someone else with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before leaving for the hospital, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was another grim symbol of the evening as Paul mangled blunt truth with blood-flecked bravado and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I love this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."