🔗 Share this article

The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped wide open, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he sank to the mat in stunned disbelief after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact registered to his scrambled senses.

"Those watching didn't pay to see this garbage," snapped the referee, summing up the dismal spectacle far more succinctly than any observer else could.

Trapped in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not run or hold on to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the gravity of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an utterly stunned moment.

So that is what it feels, and looks, to be hit hard by a real professional fighter, an Olympic champion and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the result of a proper punch ensured Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the official called the contest over. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a dull ache radiated through his jawbone, Paul finally grasped how difficult, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent level of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Victory for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing amid the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that hinted at a precise and lethal execution when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the fight. Rather than exuding intimidation or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed hesitant and crude for nearly five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, shaped the outcome. Without the gas to escape any longer, and resorting to slipping to the deck as often as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the vicious finish, but, up to that point, he had looked like a sad shadow of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Assessment

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. 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 finally reached its destination."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own stilted showing. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "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 cheerful Joshua tried out a poor imitation of his domestic rival 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 professional journeys. Both men are on the downward slope of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting big men in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the undoubted ruler of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising force. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a appropriately wowed stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Response

But the public gets what the public desires, and that certainly means additional low-quality crossover fights. Paul seemed truly proud and brash to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of the next day, he shared an radiograph, with the two fractures highlighted in crimson.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a equally diminished force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before departing to the medical facility, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was another bleak symbol of the evening as Paul mangled harsh reality with gory bravado and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little ass-whipping from one of the greatest to ever step in the ring. I love this sport and I'm going to return and keep on winning."