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Jake Paul's mouth gaped wide open, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he collapsed to the canvas in shock and awe after a devastating right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was attempting to utter "Wow!" as the force of the impact sank in to his scrambled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this garbage," said the referee, summing up the dismal spectacle much more effectively than anyone else could.

Trapped in a corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could not run or hold on to Joshua's legs in a desperate clinch as the gravity of the sweet science enveloped him. Instead, as he attempted to withstand the shot that fractured his mandible 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 real professional fighter, an Olympic champion and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been sent to the floor, but the result of a proper power shot ensured Paul could not get up and taunt his opponent before the referee waved the contest to a halt. As blood began to leak from his mouth, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how hard, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a respectable level of professionalism.

An Unimpressive Impressive Win for the Victor

Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive amid the chaos. After his hollow victory, he performed a cut-throat motion that suggested a clinical and deadly execution when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the fight. Rather than exuding intimidation or exhibiting an unshakeable confidence, Joshua had appeared tentative and awkward for almost five rounds.

Paul's poor fitness, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to escape any more, and reduced to slipping to the deck as often as he could for a rest, Paul was left defenseless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the vicious finish, but, until then, he had seemed a mournful imitation of the boxer he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Aftermath Assessment

"It wasn't the finest display," Joshua admitted. "The objective was to get Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my thoughts. It took a bit longer than expected, but the right hand finally found its destination."

Joshua praised Paul's courage but he added an excuse for his own labored performance. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a 15-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to roll into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and Rising Stars

In the post-fight interview afterwards, a cheerful Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he called for a scrap against the presently inactive boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that matchup comes much too late in their careers. Both fighters are on the far side of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most compelling big men in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk remains the unquestioned king of the weight class, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rising force. The young British heavyweight would probably have required fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to send Paul into a appropriately astonished state.

Paul's Unbowed Response

But the public gets what the public desires, and that certainly means additional low-quality celebrity contests. Paul appeared genuinely satisfied and brash to have had his mandible fractured by a hammer-like right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he shared an radiograph, with the two fractures highlighted in crimson.

That jokey nod to the Mexican superstar, a far greater boxer than Joshua but a similarly faded force, demonstrated that Paul's brazen audacity is unbroken. It might not be Canelo, but Paul will shortly locate someone else with whom he can make more than $50 million.

While he was being interviewed, before departing to the hospital, Paul expelled a streak of blood onto the canvas. It was another grim summary of the night as Paul mangled harsh reality with blood-flecked bullshit and stated: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the greatest to ever step in the ring. I love this shit and I'm going to come back and continue winning."