🔗 Share this article

Jake Paul's jaw dropped wide open, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers 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 garbage," snapped the referee, encapsulating the dismal spectacle far more effectively than anyone else could.

Trapped in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could not retreat or hold on 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 punch that broke his jaw in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an utterly dazed moment.

So this is how it feels, and appears, to be hit hard by a genuine boxer, an Olympic gold medallist and former world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the word.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the result of a clean punch ensured Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the official waved the charade over. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a numbing throb radiated through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how hard, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable standard of competition.

An Unimpressive Impressive Win for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his empty victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a clinical and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for most of the fight. Instead of glowering with menace or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared tentative and crude for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in top-level boxing, shaped the result. Lacking the stamina to flee any more, and reduced to slipping to the canvas as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the vicious ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful imitation of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Comments

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and hurt him. That has been the request, and that's what was on my mind. It took a little more time than expected, but the right hand finally reached its target."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he offered an explanation for his own labored performance. "He came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his previous defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to head into 2026."

What Comes Next: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a cheerful Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he demanded a fight against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will probably get his wish, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the far side of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world remain the Ukrainian master and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned king of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending force. The young British heavyweight likely have required fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a suitably astonished state.

Paul's Defiant Reaction

But the fans gets what the public desires, and that certainly means more pitiful crossover fights. Paul seemed truly satisfied and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he posted an X-ray, with the two fractures highlighted in red.

That lighthearted nod to the Mexican superstar, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a equally diminished force, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah is unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else with whom he can make north of $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the medical facility, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was another grim summary of the night as Paul mangled blunt truth with blood-flecked bullshit and stated: "I think my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the greatest to ever do it. I adore this sport and I'm going to return and continue winning."