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Jake Paul's mouth gaped wide open, his eyes becoming wide, stunned circles as he sank to the canvas in stunned disbelief following a devastating right hand from Anthony Joshua. It appeared as if Paul was trying to say "Wow!" as the force of the blow sank in to his scrambled senses.

"The fans didn't spend money to see this crap," snapped the referee, encapsulating the dismal affair much more effectively than anyone else managed to.

Trapped in a neutral corner of the ring in the middle of the sixth round, Paul could no longer run or hold on to Joshua's legs like a forlorn little boy as the gravity of boxing enveloped him. Instead, as he tried to absorb the shot that fractured his mandible in two separate places, Paul was caught in an completely stunned moment.

So that is what it is like, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a real professional fighter, an Olympic gold medallist and ex- world heavyweight champion. "Goodness" is certainly the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the social media star had been knocked down, but the consequences of a proper power shot ensured Paul could not rise and taunt his opponent before the official called the contest to a halt. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a numbing throb spread through his jawbone, Paul finally understood how hard, exhausting, and dangerous boxing is at a decent level of competition.

An Unimpressive Commanding Victory for the Victor

Joshua, it must be noted, was not impressive during the bedlam. After his empty victory, he made a cut-throat motion that suggested a precise and lethal finish when, in truth, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the contest. Instead of glowering with menace or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared hesitant and awkward for almost five stanzas.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a basic essential in elite boxing, dictated the result. Without the gas to escape any longer, and reduced to falling to the canvas as frequently as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered helpless by exhaustion. Joshua applied the vicious ending, but, up to that point, he had seemed a sad imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

The Winner's Post-Fight Comments

"It wasn't the best performance," 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 expected, but the right hand finally found its target."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he added an excuse for his own stilted performance. "He faced a genuine competitor tonight that's had a fifteen-month layoff," Joshua said, mentioning his previous loss. "We dusted off the cobwebs, and I am eager to roll into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the post-fight interview that followed, a cheerful Joshua tried out a poor imitation of his domestic rival as he called for a scrap against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will probably have his way, but that bout comes much too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the far side of the hill.

In contrast, the most interesting heavyweights in the world are Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned ruler of the division, having beaten both Joshua and Fury twice. Meanwhile, Itauma is a rising talent. The youthful British heavyweight would probably have required fewer than half the amount of rounds that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

Paul's Defiant Response

But the fans receives what the public wants, and that certainly means more pitiful celebrity contests. 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 shared an radiograph, with the two fractures highlighted in crimson.

That lighthearted reference to the Mexican superstar, a much superior boxer than Joshua but a equally diminished presence, showed that Paul's comic chutzpah is undented. 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 hospital, Paul spat a tracer of blood onto the canvas. It was one more grim summary of the night as Paul mixed harsh reality with gory bravado and said: "I think my jaw is broken. It's definitely broke. A nice little ass-whipping from one of the greatest to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and continue winning."