Joshua and Jake Paul Produce a Regrettable Spectacle and the Worst Aspect is More is to Follow

The YouTuber-turned-fighter's jaw dropped wide open, his expression turning to huge glazed saucers as he collapsed to the mat in stunned disbelief following a pulverising right hand from the former champion. It appeared as if Paul was trying to utter "Wow!" as the severity of the impact sank in to his scrambled senses.

Trapped in a corner of the ring midway through the sixth round, Paul could no longer retreat 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 punch that fractured his mandible in two distinct locations, Paul was lost in an utterly stunned moment.

So this is how it is like, and looks, to be struck cleanly by a genuine boxer, an Olympic champion and former world heavyweight champion. "Wow" is indeed the appropriate term.

It was the fourth time the former YouTuber had been sent to the floor, but the consequences of a proper punch ensured Paul could not get up and waggle his tongue defiantly before the official called the charade over. As blood began to trickle from his mouth, and a dull ache spread through his jaw, Paul at last grasped how difficult, grueling, and dangerous boxing is at a decent level of competition.

An Unimpressive Impressive Win for Joshua

Anthony Joshua, it should be stressed, was not impressive during the bedlam. After his hollow victory, he performed a throat-slitting gesture that suggested a clinical and deadly execution when, in reality, Joshua had appeared exasperated for the majority of the fight. Instead of glowering with menace or displaying an iron certainty, Joshua had appeared tentative and crude for almost five rounds.

Paul's lack of conditioning, which is a fundamental requirement in top-level boxing, dictated the outcome. Lacking the stamina to flee any longer, and reduced to slipping to the canvas as often as he could for a rest, Paul was rendered helpless by exhaustion. Joshua delivered the vicious ending, but, up to that point, he had looked like a mournful imitation of the fighter he had been in 2017.

Joshua's Post-Fight Comments

"That was not the best display," Joshua conceded. "The end goal was to catch Jake Paul, corner him and do damage. That has been the plan, and that's what was on my mind. It took a bit longer than anticipated, but the right hand finally reached its target."

Joshua commended Paul's bravery but he added an explanation for his own labored showing. "He faced a real fighter tonight that's had a fifteen-month hiatus," Joshua said, mentioning his last defeat. "We shook off the cobwebs, and I can't wait to roll into 2026."

The Future: Past Their Prime and New Talent

In the press conference afterwards, a jovial Joshua tried out a woeful imitation of Tyson Fury as he demanded a fight against the currently retired boxer. Joshua will likely get his wish, but that bout comes far too late in their professional journeys. Both men are on the downward slope of the peak.

In stark contrast, the most compelling heavyweights in the world remain Oleksandr Usyk and Moses Itauma. Usyk is still the unquestioned ruler of the division, after defeating both Joshua and Fury twice. At the same time, Itauma is a rising force. The youthful British heavyweight likely have required less than half the number of three-minute periods that Joshua needed to knock Paul into a suitably wowed stupor.

The Defeated Fighter's Unbowed Response

But the public receives what the public wants, and that undoubtedly means additional pitiful celebrity contests. Paul appeared truly proud and brash to have had his jaw broken by a sledgehammer right. In the wee hours of Saturday morning, he posted an X-ray, with the pair of breaks highlighted in red.

That lighthearted nod to the Mexican superstar, a far greater fighter than Joshua but a similarly diminished force, demonstrated that Paul's comic chutzpah is unbroken. It may not be Canelo, but Paul will soon locate another opponent with whom he can make more than $50 million.

During his in-ring interview, before departing to the hospital, Paul spat a streak of blood onto the ring floor. It was one more grim symbol of the evening as Paul mixed harsh reality with blood-flecked bravado and said: "I believe my jaw is broken. It's certainly broke. A proper ass-whipping from one of the best to ever do it. I adore this shit and I'm going to come back and keep on winning."