Jake Paul says he will retire if Cedric Doumbe beats him

Jake Paul says he will retire from boxing if he loses to Cedric Doumbe in their eight-round cruiserweight bout in Dubai on 24 December.

The fight will be Paul’s first since Anthony Joshua stopped him in the sixth round last December. Paul said the defeat left him needing two titanium plates fitted and several teeth removed.

“This is a dangerous fight,” Paul said in a social media video, describing Doumbe as a two-time world champion who was “not scared of anybody”. Doumbe is a former kickboxing world champion who now competes in mixed martial arts, but has had only one professional boxing bout, which he won in 2015.

“If he wins, I will hang up the gloves and call it a day,” Paul said. He added that he expected to knock Doumbe out on Christmas Eve.

The 29-year-old American has won 12 of his 14 professional fights. His other defeat came against Tommy Fury. Paul said in May that his boxing career was “most definitely” in doubt after the injuries sustained against Joshua.