Jake Paul will return to the ring against Cédric Doumbé on Thursday, December 24, at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai. Paul's promotion, Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), announced the eight-round cruiserweight boxing bout, according to Ariel Helwani, who reported that the broadcaster is still to be announced.
What was announced
According to Gulf News, the fight is contested at 200 lbs with 10-ounce gloves. The event comes out of a co-operation agreement between MVP, the Dubai Sports Council and Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism, and it is Paul's first professional boxing fight in Dubai. The National reports that Paul is considered the favourite.
The two have already started trading words. Gulf News quotes Paul as saying "I'm rusty, my jaw is janky and I don't have kickboxing world titles like you do." Doumbé answered: "Jake Paul calls himself the Problem Child, but he's never faced a problem like me."
The background
Paul is 12-2 with 7 knockouts as a professional boxer and has not fought since his knockout loss to former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in December 2025. The National and Gulf News both report that he suffered a double jaw fracture in that fight.
Doumbé is a French fighter born in Cameroon. Gulf News describes the 34-year-old as a former two-time Glory kickboxing world champion. Our database lists him at 6-1 in MMA, with all six wins by knockout, and ranks him number 10 in the PFL welterweight division. His last fight was a first-round technical knockout of Jaleel Willis at Bellator Champions Series 2 on May 17, 2024. Before that he lost by knockout in round three to Baissangour Chamsoudinov at PFL Europe 1 in March 2024.
Helwani reported that Doumbé quietly stepped away from competition to focus on family and other personal matters. This will be his first boxing match since April 2015, when he won his only pro boxing bout so far.
What comes next
Both fighters will appear at two free public press conferences, in Paris on November 10 and at the Dubai Opera House on November 12, according to Gulf News.
Ticket sales follow a staged schedule, per Gulf News. PFL Dubai ticket holders get a presale from Friday, November 6. A presale for registered fans opens on November 14. General sale starts on Sunday, November 15, at 12pm UAE time through the Coca-Cola Arena website.
The broadcaster has not been named. For Paul, the fight is a first test of his jaw and his appetite for boxing after the Joshua loss. For Doumbé, it is a return after more than two years away, against a boxer with far more pro experience.
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