Jake Paul Returns Christmas Eve in Dubai, Opponent Still a Secret

Update (Nov. 2): The secret's out. Paul will face Cédric Doumbé on Dec. 24 at Dubai's Coca-Cola Arena. Read: It's Official: Jake Paul vs. Cédric Doumbé on Christmas Eve in Dubai.

Ten months after Anthony Joshua broke his jaw in two places, Jake Paul has picked his comeback date, and he picked a holiday for it.

Most Valuable Promotions announced Thursday that Paul will return on Thursday, Dec. 24, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. MVP is billing the night as "A Christmas Eve Spectacle," with Visit Dubai and the Dubai Sports Council tagged as partners on the official poster.

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Paul followed a few minutes later with his own post. "All I want for Christmas Eve is boxing in Dubai," he wrote. "I've spent years proving people wrong, taking risks, and pushing myself against opponents nobody thought I'd face. Nothing that's happened has changed my belief in myself or what I'm working toward. I'm hungrier than ever."

What's missing is the most important part: the guy in the other corner. Neither MVP nor Paul named an opponent, a venue inside Dubai or a broadcaster. Earlier this week MVP said it was negotiating with four potential opponents for a return in late 2026 or early 2027. Now we know which end of that window they chose.

The last time we saw Paul in a ring, it didn't go his way. Joshua stopped him in the sixth round in Miami last December after dropping him twice in the fifth. It was the first knockout loss of Paul's career. Paul later posted an X-ray showing two fractures, had surgery, and said in the ring that night he wanted to take a break, heal and come back to "fight people my weight," with a cruiserweight world title as the goal, according to ESPN.

Now, the Kimster's take. Whatever you think of Paul, the man doesn't hide. He took the Joshua fight when nobody asked him to, got punished for it, and is coming right back on the biggest stage the Gulf can build. The question isn't whether he'll fight on Christmas Eve. It's who MVP puts in front of him. If he really means that cruiserweight talk, the opponent will tell us. A real 200-pounder says he's chasing a belt. A safe name says he's chasing a rebuild. Either way, I'll be watching that announcement closer than the poster.

Once the opponent is official and the bout hits the board, you can make your call on Boxbid's Fight Picker.