Forty MMA knockouts in one ring
Jake Paul’s Christmas Eve show in Dubai has a new attraction. Most Valuable Promotions confirmed today that Alistair Overeem will make his professional boxing debut against Jimi Manuwa, a six-round heavyweight contest slotted onto the undercard of Paul’s cruiserweight meeting with Cedric Doumbe.
The pairing leans hard on nostalgia, and the numbers explain why. MVP chief executive Nakisa Bidarian pointed out that the two men carry a combined 40 knockouts from their MMA careers. Overeem’s résumé covers a Strikeforce heavyweight title and a K-1 World Grand Prix crown, a rare double across two striking-heavy worlds.
The Dutchman framed the move as a fresh chapter rather than a farewell lap. He insisted he is not stepping in “to make up the numbers” and called his opponent a dangerous man with real power.
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Manuwa already has a head start
On paper, Manuwa holds the edge in boxing experience, even if it amounts to a single fight. The Londoner, now 46, came out of retirement in August and stopped former UFC heavyweight Chase Sherman in the second round in Orlando on his professional boxing debut.
His MMA record is built on the same weapon. Manuwa turned pro in 2008, won his first 14 fights and walked away from the sport in 2019 at 17-6. Fifteen of those 17 wins ended by knockout or technical knockout, a finishing rate of roughly 88 percent that made him one of the UFC’s most feared strikers at light heavyweight.
He was not shy about the outcome either. Manuwa said he had followed Overeem’s career since his own early days, wanted this fight precisely because it was not an easy one, and predicted that one of them would be put to sleep on December 24. Not him, naturally.
Paul’s comeback sets the stage
All of this sits underneath the main event. Paul returns to the ring 12 months after the sixth-round stoppage loss to Anthony Joshua that left him with a broken jaw, and Doumbe, a kickboxer turned PFL fighter, is the man tasked with testing how much that night took out of him.
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