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The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped wide open, 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 looked as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the force of the blow registered to his scrambled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this crap," said the referee, summing up the sorry spectacle much more effectively than anyone else could.

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

So that is what it feels, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a real boxer, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the consequences of a proper punch ensured Paul would not be able to rise and taunt his opponent before the official called the contest over. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a dull ache radiated through his jaw, Paul at last understood how difficult, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a decent level of competition.

A Far From Commanding Win for Joshua

Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the chaos. After his empty victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that hinted at a precise and lethal execution when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the contest. Instead of glowering with menace or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared tentative and awkward for nearly five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, shaped the outcome. Without the gas to flee any longer, and resorting to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was left defenseless by fatigue. Joshua delivered the vicious finish, but, until then, he had seemed a mournful shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Assessment

"That was not the best display," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the straight right eventually reached its target."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he offered an explanation for his own labored showing. "He came up against a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, referencing his previous defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

The Future: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a cheerful Joshua tried out a woeful impression of his domestic rival as he demanded a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that matchup comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the far side of the peak.

In contrast, the most compelling big men in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and the British prospect. Usyk remains the unquestioned ruler of the weight class, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The youthful British heavyweight likely have required less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua required to send Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Defiant Reaction

But the fans receives what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means more low-quality celebrity fights. Paul seemed genuinely proud and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of the next day, he posted an X-ray, with the pair of breaks highlighted in crimson.

That jokey reference to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly faded presence, showed that Paul's brazen audacity is undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate another opponent with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was another grim symbol of the night as Paul mangled blunt truth with gory bullshit and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper beating from one of the greatest to ever step in the ring. I adore this sport and I'm going to return and continue winning."