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Jake Paul's jaw dropped wide open, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the canvas in shock and awe following a devastating right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was trying to say "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

"Those watching didn't spend money to see this crap," snapped the referee, summing up the sorry affair far more succinctly than any observer else could.

Trapped in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely dazed moment.

So this is how it is like, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been knocked down, but the result of a proper power shot meant Paul would not be able to get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the contest over. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a dull ache radiated through his jawbone, Paul at last understood how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a decent level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Impressive Victory for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the chaos. After his empty victory, he made a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a clinical and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the contest. Instead of exuding intimidation or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had seemed hesitant and awkward for nearly five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to escape any more, and resorting to falling to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the vicious finish, but, until then, he had seemed a sad imitation of the boxer he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"That was not the best performance," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to catch 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 reached its destination."

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

The Future: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua attempted a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that matchup comes much too late in their careers. Both men are on the far side of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the undoubted king of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The young British heavyweight would probably have needed fewer than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua required to send Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

Paul's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans receives what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means additional low-quality crossover contests. Paul appeared truly proud and brash to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the two fractures highlighted in red.

That lighthearted reference to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, demonstrated that Paul's brazen audacity is unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else with whom he can earn more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before departing to the medical facility, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more bleak symbol of the night as Paul mangled blunt truth with blood-flecked bravado 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 shit and I'm going to come back and continue winning."