Jake Paul says he will retire from boxing if he loses to Cedric Doumbe when they meet in Dubai on 24 December. The professionally sanctioned bout is scheduled for eight rounds, with both fighters using 10oz gloves.
It will be Paul’s first fight since Anthony Joshua stopped him in the sixth round last December. Joshua, a former world heavyweight champion, knocked Paul down twice and broke his jaw. Paul later had two titanium plates fitted and some teeth removed.
“This is a dangerous fight,” Paul said in a social media video, describing Doumbe as a two-time world champion who is not afraid of him. He added that if Doumbe wins, he will “hang up the gloves and call it a day”. Paul also predicted he would knock out his opponent, saying the fight would not go the distance.
Paul, a social media influencer turned professional fighter, said in May that his boxing career was “most definitely” in doubt after his injuries against Joshua. The 29-year-old American has won 12 of his 14 professional fights, with his other defeat coming against Tommy Fury.
Paul entered the WBA cruiserweight rankings in July 2025 after beating former world champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, but lost his ranking following the Joshua defeat.
Doumbe, a Cameroonian-born Frenchman, is a multi-time kickboxing world champion who moved into MMA. The 34-year-old is signed to the Professional Fighters League, which merged with Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions in July. Doumbe has won two of his three PFL fights since joining in 2023 and has one professional boxing bout, a victory in 2015.
Sources: BBC Sport.