🔗 Share this article

Jake Paul's mouth gaped agape, his expression turning to wide, stunned circles as he sank to the canvas in shock and awe following a devastating right hand from the former champion. It looked as if Paul was attempting to utter "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his rattled senses.

"The audience didn't spend money to see this crap," said the referee, summing up the sorry spectacle far more succinctly than anyone else managed to.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the gravity of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that broke his jaw in two separate places, Paul was caught in an utterly dazed moment.

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

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the result of a clean power shot ensured Paul would not be able to get up and taunt his opponent before the referee called the contest over. As blood began to leak from his lips, and a numbing throb radiated through his jawbone, Paul at last understood how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Commanding Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive during the bedlam. After his empty victory, he made a cut-throat motion that suggested a precise and lethal execution when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the contest. Rather than 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 fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, shaped the outcome. Lacking the stamina to escape any longer, and resorting to slipping to the canvas as frequently as he could for a breather, Paul was rendered defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the brutal ending, but, until then, he had looked like a sad imitation of the fighter he was in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the finest display," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the right hand eventually reached its target."

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

The Future: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the press conference afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a poor imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that matchup comes far too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the downward slope of the hill.

In stark contrast, the most interesting big men in the world remain the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk is still the undoubted king of the division, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have needed less than half the amount of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a suitably astonished stupor.

Paul's Unbowed Response

But the public gets what the public desires, and that undoubtedly means more low-quality crossover contests. Paul appeared truly satisfied and brash to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks marked in crimson.

That lighthearted nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior fighter than Joshua but a equally faded force, demonstrated that Paul's brazen audacity is undented. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find another opponent with whom he can make north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the hospital, Paul expelled a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was one more bleak summary of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with gory bullshit and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A nice little ass-whipping from one of the greatest to ever do it. I love this sport and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."