Jake Paul is putting it all on the line for his next – and possibly last – boxing match.
“The Problem Child” announced Monday that he is set to fight PFL star Cedric Doumbe on Dec. 24, Christmas Eve, at Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai. Paul followed that up with a video Tuesday in which he upped the ante, claiming that if he loses to Doumbe, he will retire from boxing.
“All jokes aside, this is a dangerous fight,” Paul said. “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.”
When Paul faces off with Doumbe, it will marks his first in-ring appearance since he was defeated by heavyweight boxing star Anthony Joshua. That December 2025 contest ended with Joshua scoring a knockout in the sixth round and leaving Paul with a broken jaw.
In Paul’s video, he reacted to the loss, making light of his subsequent recovery and doubts.
“Why now?” Paul said. “Honestly, after Joshua, part of me thought about quitting, never boxing again. He broke my jaw. I have two titanium plates in my mouth. I couldn’t eat for weeks. I couldn’t even talk or smile at my bank statements. I was just laying in bed night after night, asking myself, ‘Do I still want to do this?’
“Yeah, obviously I still want to do this. I ain’t no bitch.”
Paul’s record fell to 12-2 after being knocked out by Joshua, with his other loss coming at the hands of reality television star and pro boxer Tommy Fury. Outside of those contests, Paul has also shared the ring with legend Mike Tyson, former WBC champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., and MMA stars Anderson Silva, Nate Diaz, Tyron Woodley, Mike Perry, and Ben Askren, among others.
The 29-year-old is convinced fans have no choice but to consider him a legitimate fighter due to his past ventures and his upcoming fight with the popular Doumbe, a two-time Glory Kickboxing champion with a 6-1 record in MMA.
“Y’all said, ‘Fight a real boxer,’ so I fought Anthony f*cking Joshua and people still want to talk,” Paul said. “Y’all don’t get it. I will fight anyone, anytime, anyplace. I’ve said it before.
“And my next victim just so happens to be the biggest fighter in France.”
