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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's mouth gaped agape, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he collapsed to the canvas in shock and awe after a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was trying to utter "Wow!" as the severity of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

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

Pinned in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an completely stunned moment.

So this is how it feels, and looks, to be hit hard by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the consequences of a clean punch ensured Paul would not be able to rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official waved the contest to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul finally grasped how hard, grueling, and perilous boxing is at a respectable level of competition.

A Far From Impressive Victory for the Victor

Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the bedlam. After his empty victory, he made a cut-throat motion that hinted at a clinical and lethal execution when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared tentative and awkward for nearly five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to flee any longer, and resorting to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the vicious ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful shadow of the fighter he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the finest performance," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than expected, but the right hand finally found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he offered an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, referencing his last loss. "We shook off the rust, and I can't wait to roll into 2026."

What Comes Next: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the post-fight interview that followed, a cheerful Joshua attempted a woeful impression of Tyson Fury as he demanded a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the downward slope of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most interesting big men in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned king of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising talent. The young British heavyweight would probably have required less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a suitably astonished state.

Paul's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans gets what the public wants, and that certainly means more pitiful celebrity contests. Paul appeared truly satisfied and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of the next day, he posted an X-ray, with the pair of breaks highlighted in crimson.

That jokey reference to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a equally faded presence, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find another opponent with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul expelled a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more grim summary of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with blood-flecked bullshit and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A nice little 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."