Jake Paul has declared he "brought boxing back" with his involvement in the sport over the past few years.
Paul made his debut in a white-collar match with fellow YouTuber Deji Olatunji back in the summer of 2018, with his brother Logan facing KSI in the main event.
The show sold over 1million pay-per-views at a discounted price of £7, and ushered in the era of social media boxing, following on the heels of the KSI vs Joe Weller fight that had taken place a few months prior.
Logan and KSI would go on to turn professional for a big-money rematch the following year, with Jake following his brother into the paid ranks for a bout with fellow YouTuber AnEsonGib in 2020.
And the younger Paul brother has claimed that there was "nothing exciting" happening in the sport when he and his fellow social media stars decided to make their way into it.
"People are mad, they're jealous, they don't think I deserve to be in this position," Paul told Seconds Out.
"I understand where they're coming from, I came in and really took over boxing and MMA, which is kind of crazy.
"People say 'oh he shouldn't be in combat sports', but I am combat sports - there was really nothing exciting going on without me in here.
"There were some things that were cool, but realistically I brought the sport back."
Logan opened his career with a loss to KSI, and has since gone on to have a lucrative but controversial exhibition bout with Floyd Mayweather.
No winner was declared when Mayweather and the elder Paul went the distance, with many fans and experts branding the fight a farce with Paul weighing in 35lbs heavier than the unbeaten boxing legend.
Jake, on the other hand, has taken the sport more seriously, facing first fellow YouTuber 'Gib', before viciously knocking out basketball star Nate Robinson.
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He then made the step up to MMA legend Ben Askren who, while known for his poor striking, had won world championships in Bellator and ONE FC.
He put down Askren within a round, and then faced former UFC champion Tyron Woodley, who was a fearsome striker in MMA having knocked out the likes of Robbie Lawlor.
After beating Woodley by split-decision in August, after being rocked for the first time, Paul has set up a bout with unbeaten prospect and Love Island star Tommy Fury.
Fury is the younger brother of world heavyweight champion Tyson, and is unbeaten in his young professional career, having also had a legitimate, albeit brief, run in the amateurs.
It is a noted step-up in competition for Paul, who to this point has only faced one man with even an amateur boxing match to his name in 'Gib', who had faced beginners in his two white collar bouts.
The Fury fight takes place on December 18 in Tampa, Florida live on pay-per-view.
