Jake Paul to face PFL vet Cedric Doumbe in Christmas Eve boxing return
· Yahoo Sports
Jake
Paul will face former two-time Glory kickboxing champion
Cedric
Doumbe in his boxing return on Dec. 24 at Coca-Cola Arena in
Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Most Valuable Promotions announced the matchup Monday, confirming an eight-round cruiserweight bout at 200 pounds with 10-ounce gloves. Paul (12-2, 7 KOs) will compete for the first time since suffering a sixth-round knockout loss to Anthony Joshua in December 2025.
Doumbe (75-7-1, 45 KOs in kickboxing; 6-1, 6 KOs in MMA) twice held the Glory welterweight championship. The French fighter also recorded a nine-second knockout of Jordan Zebo in his Professional Fighters League debut in September 2023.
Paul took a verbal shot at his opponent, referencing Doumbe’s kickboxing accomplishments while emphasizing that they will compete under boxing rules.
“I'm rusty, my jaw is janky, and I don't have kickboxing world titles like you do. But guess what, this isn't kickboxing mon ami. This is boxing,” Paul said in a statement released by Most Valuable Promotions.
Doumbe promised to follow Joshua’s example and hand Paul another knockout loss. “I'm going to finish the job Joshua started,” Doumbe said.
The Christmas Eve matchup will mark Paul’s first professional fight in Dubai. MVP also announced press conferences in Paris on Nov. 10 and Dubai on Nov. 12.
Most Valuable Promotions announced the matchup Monday, confirming an eight-round cruiserweight bout at 200 pounds with 10-ounce gloves. Paul (12-2, 7 KOs) will compete for the first time since suffering a sixth-round knockout loss to Anthony Joshua in December 2025.
Cedric Doumbe vows to finish what Anthony Joshua started as Jake Paul returns to boxing in Dubai
Doumbe (75-7-1, 45 KOs in kickboxing; 6-1, 6 KOs in MMA) twice held the Glory welterweight championship. The French fighter also recorded a nine-second knockout of Jordan Zebo in his Professional Fighters League debut in September 2023.
Paul took a verbal shot at his opponent, referencing Doumbe’s kickboxing accomplishments while emphasizing that they will compete under boxing rules.
“I'm rusty, my jaw is janky, and I don't have kickboxing world titles like you do. But guess what, this isn't kickboxing mon ami. This is boxing,” Paul said in a statement released by Most Valuable Promotions.
Doumbe promised to follow Joshua’s example and hand Paul another knockout loss. “I'm going to finish the job Joshua started,” Doumbe said.
The Christmas Eve matchup will mark Paul’s first professional fight in Dubai. MVP also announced press conferences in Paris on Nov. 10 and Dubai on Nov. 12.
𝙇𝙊𝙊𝙆𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝙏𝙊 𝙍𝙀𝙈𝙄𝙉𝘿 𝙀𝙑𝙀𝙍𝙔𝙊𝙉𝙀 𝙒𝙃𝙊 𝙄𝙎 “𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘽𝙀𝙎𝙏” ☝️ @CedricDoumbe fires shot at @jakepaul ahead of December 24th. Let the fun begin🍿👀 Tickets go ON SALE Sun, Nov 15th🎟️ ——— Thursday, December 24th Coca-Cola Arena - Dubai, UAE @visitdubai @DubaiSC #PaulDoumbe— MVP - Most Valuable Promotions (@MostVpromotions) November 2, 2026
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