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Jake Paul's mouth gaped agape, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he sank to the canvas in shock and awe after a devastating right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to say "Whoa!" as the force of the impact registered to his rattled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this garbage," said the referee, summing up the sorry affair much more effectively than any observer else could.

Pinned in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or cling to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the serious reality of boxing became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the punch that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an completely stunned moment.

So that is what it is like, and appears, to be struck cleanly by a real professional fighter, 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 punch meant Paul could not rise and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official waved the charade to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a dull ache spread through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how hard, exhausting, and perilous boxing is at a decent standard of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Commanding Victory for the Victor

Joshua, it must be noted, was far from convincing during the chaos. After his empty victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that hinted at a precise and lethal finish when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the contest. Instead of exuding intimidation or exhibiting an iron certainty, Joshua had seemed tentative and crude for almost five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, shaped the outcome. Without the gas to escape any more, and reduced to slipping to the deck as often as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by fatigue. Joshua applied the vicious ending, but, until then, he had seemed a mournful imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Assessment

"It wasn't the finest display," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a little more time than anticipated, but the straight right eventually found its destination."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He faced a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his previous defeat. "We shook off the rust, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a jovial Joshua attempted a woeful impression of Tyson Fury as he demanded a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that matchup comes far too late in their careers. Both men are on the downward slope of the peak.

In contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the undoubted king of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have required fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a appropriately wowed state.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Response

But the fans gets what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful celebrity fights. Paul seemed genuinely proud and brash to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of the next day, he shared an radiograph, with the pair of breaks highlighted in crimson.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a similarly diminished presence, demonstrated that Paul's brazen audacity is undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate someone else with whom he can earn north of $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before leaving for the medical facility, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim symbol of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with gory bravado and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper beating from one of the best to ever step in the ring. I love this sport and I'm going to come back and continue winning."