Logan Paul bringing in big money and new eyes on boxing – just like Mike Tyson did in the 1980s and 90s when he fought Michael Spinks, Evander Holyfield and became a champion

Jake and Logan Paul were considered the enemy of the fight world when they decided to turn their hands to professional boxing.

A couple years in, at least a few minds have changed after seeing the opportunity and money the controversial brothers have brought to the sport.

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Any sport needs polarising figures. Conor McGregor helped make mixed martial arts a global phenomenon. Hell, Stone Cold Steve Austin took professional wrestling to unheard of heights.

Mike Tyson did that for boxing in the late 1980s. Iron Mike breathed new life into the sport and his destructive, mysterious nature captured the world’s imagination.

Now, it appears as though Tyson will be taking on the elder Paul brother, Logan, in February next year.

It’s the crossing of two business altering stars who flourished for totally opposite reasons.

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Paul, 27, is not in the same world as Tyson when it comes to ability. In fact, the aforementioned names who catapulted their sports to new levels all had the same thing in common - they were undeniably great.

Tyson was also that. He became the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and was blitzing people in just a few rounds.

Paul is an exhibition fighter. His brother Jake is a professional fighter, but he has only fought four first-time boxers thus far, though they are decorated athletes in other backgrounds (with the exception of his first opponent).

They’ve harnessed the power of having a social media presence. With more than 23 million followers each on YouTube and many more on Instagram and Twitter, the Paul brothers bring a great audience with them wherever they go.

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Logan’s bout with Floyd Mayweather reportedly attracted around one million pay-per-view buys. While a lot of that could be attributed to Mayweather himself, it’s still estimated to be his sixth highest bought fight.

The brothers have no problems playing the bad guy. They know there are thousands, maybe millions of boxing fans who would love to see a real boxer shut these guys up. People will pay good money to watch the Paul brothers get knocked out and the longer their foray into the sport has gone, the greater the hunger for blood has gotten.

But, that equates to money for the Pauls and they are very aware of that. Now that Logan is set to take on Iron Mike, it’s the perfect combination of fans lusting after Tyson’s legendary knockout power and the desire to see Paul knocked out.

Same with Jake Paul. He’s in talks to face Tommy Fury and that would represent the first fighter who is actually his size - he’s in fact bigger - and someone who is a trained pro boxer like he has been for the past two years.

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Fury also carries the name. His brother is WBC heavyweight world champion Tyson Fury and that only adds a layer of intrigue to the contest. Could a YouTuber really knock out a Fury? Can Tommy be the one to finally halt the Paul hype train?

The Paul brothers have marketed their way into boxing and will have changed the game moving forward. More eyes are on the sport as a result of their foray and more money than ever comes with that.

The perfect clash of generations is heading this February.