Jake Paul has promised to “hang up the gloves” if he loses his Christmas Eve cruiserweight bout against MMA star Cedric Doumbe.
The contest, which is professionally sanctioned, takes place at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai on December 24.
The 29-year-old American’s comeback follows a sixth-round stoppage defeat at the end of 2025 in which Anthony Joshua broke his jaw.
Paul has also previously lost to Tommy Fury, the brother of Tyson Fury.
His opponent, Doumbe, is a former two-time Glory welterweight world champion in kickboxing who has boxed only once before, in 2015.
Paul says he will “hang up the gloves and call it a day” if he loses to the Frenchman in Dubai.
“All jokes aside, this is a dangerous fight,” Paul said in a video post on his social media accounts.
“Cedric has been in there with killers his whole career. He's a two-time world champion and he's not scared of anybody, including me ‘The Vanilla Gorilla’, but this is my sport. No kicks, no takedowns, and no glass on the floor, we checked.
“If he wins, I will hang up the gloves and call it a day, but if he loses, the man who calls himself ‘The Best’ just got beat up by a YouTuber with a titanium jaw.
“So, Cedric Doumbe, I, Jake Joseph Paul, will knock you out, embarrass you and defeat you on Christmas Eve. This fight is not going the distance and someone is getting put to sleep in the Middle East and it’s not Santa.”
Doumbe previously said via a press release: “Jake Paul calls himself the ‘Problem Child’, but he's never faced a problem like me. He has no idea what a Frenchman is capable of, and on Thursday 24 December in Dubai, I’m going to eat ‘El Poulet’ [the chicken] for dinner.
“Jake loves to talk, and so do I, but after what Joshua did to his jaw, I'm not sure how much talking he has left. I'm going to finish the job Joshua started.
“Dubai is a special city to me, and on Christmas Eve, I’ll be waving le Tricolore over his unconscious body. France, this one’s for you.”
Doumbe has predominantly competed at 170lb, considerably lighter than the 185lb to 200lb range in which Paul has fought for much of his career. Their bout will have a 200lb weight limit. Paul, meanwhile, weighed in at 227lb for his fight against heavyweight legend Mike Tyson.
Paul’s 12-2 record includes the aforementioned loss to Joshua and a points defeat to Fury, but he holds wins over Tyson and former UFC champions Anderson Silva and Tyron Woodley, among others.
Paul’s biggest fight was that 2024 contest with Tyson, who was 58 at the time. Paul beat the American icon on points.
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