🔗 Share this article

Jake Paul's jaw dropped agape, his eyes becoming huge glazed saucers as he sank to the mat in stunned disbelief following a pulverising right hand from Anthony Joshua. It looked as if Paul was trying to say "Wow!" as the force of the blow sank in to his rattled senses.

"The audience didn't pay to see this rubbish," said the referee, encapsulating the dismal spectacle much more effectively than any observer else could.

Trapped in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat or cling to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the serious reality of the sweet science became clear. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the shot that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was caught in an completely stunned moment.

So this is how it feels, and looks, to be hit hard by a genuine professional fighter, an Olympic gold medallist 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 consequences of a clean punch meant Paul could not rise and taunt his opponent before the referee waved the charade over. As blood began to trickle from his lips, and a dull ache spread through his jawbone, Paul at last grasped how hard, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of competition.

An Unimpressive Commanding Victory for the Victor

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive amid the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he made a cut-throat motion that suggested a clinical and deadly finish when, in reality, Joshua had cut a frustrated figure for the majority of the fight. Rather than glowering with menace or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared hesitant and crude for nearly five stanzas.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the outcome. Without the gas to flee any longer, and resorting to falling to the canvas as often as he could for a breather, Paul was left helpless by fatigue. Joshua applied the brutal finish, but, up to that point, he had seemed a mournful shadow of the fighter he was in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Comments

"It wasn't the best performance," Joshua conceded. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than expected, but the right hand finally found its target."

Joshua commended Paul's courage but he offered an explanation for his own stilted performance. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his previous defeat. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to roll into 2026."

The Future: Faded Forces and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview that followed, a jovial Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both fighters are on the far side of the peak.

In contrast, the most compelling big men in the world are the Ukrainian master and the British prospect. Usyk is still the unquestioned ruler of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury on two occasions. At the same time, Itauma is a rapidly ascending talent. The young British heavyweight likely have needed less than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a appropriately wowed state.

Paul's Defiant Reaction

But the fans gets what the public desires, and that certainly means additional low-quality crossover contests. Paul appeared genuinely proud and cocky to have had his jaw broken by a hammer-like right. In the early hours of Saturday morning, he posted an radiograph, with the pair of breaks marked in red.

That lighthearted nod to the Mexican superstar, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah is undented. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly find someone else with whom he can earn 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 evening as Paul mixed harsh reality with gory bravado and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the best to ever step in the ring. I adore this shit and I'm going to return and keep on winning."