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Jake Paul's mouth gaped agape, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he sank to the mat in stunned disbelief after a devastating right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to utter "Whoa!" as the severity of the impact registered to his rattled senses.

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

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was caught in an completely dazed moment.

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

It was the fourth time the social media star had been sent to the floor, but the result of a clean power shot meant Paul would not be able to get up and taunt his opponent before the official waved the charade to a halt. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a dull ache radiated through his jawbone, Paul at last grasped how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a decent level of professionalism.

A Far From Impressive Victory for the Victor

Joshua, it should be stressed, was far from convincing during the bedlam. After his empty victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a precise and deadly finish when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for most of the fight. Instead of exuding intimidation or displaying an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared hesitant and crude for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, dictated the result. Without the gas to escape any more, and resorting to slipping to the deck as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the vicious finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a sad shadow of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Assessment

"That was not the best performance," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the request, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than expected, but the straight right finally reached its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he added an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He faced a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, referencing his previous defeat. "We dusted off the rust, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

The Future: Faded Forces and New Talent

In the press conference afterwards, a cheerful Joshua tried out a poor impression of his domestic rival as he called for a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably get his wish, but that matchup comes far too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most compelling big men in the world are the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the undoubted king of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rising force. The youthful British heavyweight likely have required less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to send Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Reaction

But the fans gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional low-quality celebrity fights. Paul seemed genuinely satisfied and cocky to have had his mandible fractured by a sledgehammer right. In the early hours of the next day, he posted an X-ray, with the two fractures highlighted in crimson.

That jokey reference to Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a similarly faded force, showed that Paul's brazen audacity is unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the hospital, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was another bleak summary of the night as Paul mixed harsh reality with blood-flecked bullshit and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I love this shit and I'm going to return and keep on winning."