🔗 Share this article

Jake Paul's mouth gaped agape, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he sank to the mat in stunned disbelief after a devastating right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the severity of the blow registered to his rattled senses.

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

Trapped in a neutral corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not run 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 distinct locations, Paul was caught in an utterly dazed moment.

So that is what it is like, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the appropriate term.

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 rise and taunt his opponent before the official called the contest over. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a dull ache spread through his jawbone, Paul at last grasped how hard, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent level 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 performed a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a precise and lethal finish when, in truth, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed tentative and awkward for almost five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in top-level boxing, shaped the outcome. Lacking the stamina to escape any more, and reduced to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was left helpless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the brutal ending, but, up to that point, he had seemed 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 end goal 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 bit longer than expected, but the straight right finally found its destination."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he offered an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his last loss. "We shook off the rust, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the press conference that followed, a jovial Joshua attempted a poor impression of Tyson Fury as he demanded a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that bout comes far too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the downward slope of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most compelling 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 on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rising talent. The young British heavyweight would probably have required less than half the number of rounds that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Reaction

But the public gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means more pitiful crossover contests. Paul seemed truly satisfied and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he posted an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That jokey reference to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a equally diminished presence, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah is undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will soon find another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before departing to the hospital, Paul expelled a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim summary of the night as Paul mixed blunt truth with gory bullshit and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."