🔗 Share this article

The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped agape, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he sank to the mat in shock and awe after a devastating right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was trying to utter "Wow!" as the force of the impact registered to his rattled senses.

"The fans didn't pay to see this crap," snapped the referee, encapsulating the sorry spectacle far more succinctly than any observer else could.

Trapped in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not run or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the gravity of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely stunned moment.

So that is what it feels, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a real boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the word.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been sent to the floor, but the consequences of a clean punch ensured Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the referee waved the contest over. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul at last understood how hard, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent level of professionalism.

A Far From Commanding Win for Joshua

Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive amid the chaos. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a precise and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the fight. Rather than exuding intimidation or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed hesitant and awkward for almost five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, shaped the result. Lacking the stamina to escape any longer, and reduced to slipping to the deck as often as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered helpless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the brutal finish, but, up to that point, he had looked like a sad imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Comments

"It wasn't the finest display," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than expected, but the straight right eventually reached its target."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he offered an explanation for his own stilted performance. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "We shook off the rust, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably get his wish, but that bout comes much too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting big men in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the undoubted king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight likely have needed less than half the number of rounds that Joshua required to knock Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Response

But the public gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means more low-quality celebrity fights. Paul appeared truly proud and cocky 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 pair of breaks marked in crimson.

That jokey reference to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a equally diminished force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah remains unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find someone else with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before departing to the hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was one more bleak summary of the evening as Paul mangled harsh reality with blood-flecked bullshit and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A nice little ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I love this sport and I'm going to return and continue winning."