What active heavyweight has the best shot at beating a prime Evander Holyfield?

Well you need some serious power to deter Holyfield's game! a good inside game and decent movement. Tyson Fury does not have the power, Wladimir Kiltschko does not have the inside game and Deontay Wilder does not have the movement or jab! infact he will probably be out jabbed by Evander Hoyfield. So taking all of this information into consecration? Wladimir Kiltschko probably has the most attributes that would benefit him up against Holyfield which are? A strong jab, good movement and serious power! But unlike Lennox Lewis, i don't think Waldimir Kiltschko can fight on the inside as good! so that fight would be a 60-40 fight in favor of Evander Holyfield....

Fury. Too big, too skilled. Would jab Holyfield to bits, and Evander wouldn't be able to catch/reach him.

fury or Joshua due to size but idk idk if any can beat him

It would be interesting to see how Fury would respond to a very busy guy roughing him up. I don't think it would be possible to always keep Holyfield on the outside in the first half of the fight, and most of the time he know how to get his shots off inside, even against bigger men. Fury's movement is really good for a big guy but is it good enough to avoid dog-fight rounds where a real dog like Holyfield is outworking him? That's a good point but we will never know. The thing about Fury is he is a much different fighter now than when he fought Cunningham & Pajkic. He put the pedal down after he got up & stopped them both. I think about how Chisora gave Helenius, Klitschko, Whyte, Pulev good fights but Fury was able to completely shut him down & made him quit on his stool. Fury also completely shut down Klitschko's jab & won a decision in Germany. People here would just say Chisora was washed up & Kitschko was done but he totally nullified both of them where nobody else did that. Haye ko'd Chisora but other than that Chisora had shown to be a tough nights work for any contender. Klitschko had destroyed Pulev & beat Jennings but looked totally finished against Fury. I think Fury does not get enough credit for him skill...

This is a good poll because you can see who voted Wilder and iggy their posts. We need more of these to identify the mentally handicapped.

I don't disagree at all. The only guy I said on that list I think could beat him was Fury. All the rest it's a crap shoot. I find it tough to compare eras... It would be interesting to see how Fury would respond to a very busy guy roughing him up. I don't think it would be possible to always keep Holyfield on the outside in the first half of the fight, and most of the time he know how to get his shots off inside, even against bigger men. Fury's movement is really good for a big guy but is it good enough to avoid dog-fight rounds where a real dog like Holyfield is outworking him?

Fury purely because of the size. We haven't seen enough of Joshua to talk about him in fights like this. Wlad at his best would be the pick but he's far from that.

Holyfield would first have to not respect the skills of any of the tallest fighters like he did against Bowe and try to bang them out. Then that would give those that can bang at the most the best shot. AJ, Klitschko and Wilder. I believe Holyfield would need to gameplan these guys (not just go in and prove he's a real heavyweight or whatever nonsense he was on against Bowe) and exploit weaknesses in each. So having to gameplan these guys means I'd give them the biggest shot. The others are less likely to no shot. I can only pick one so I'm going to go with Wilder. Even though I know his weaknesses and a cruiserweight style counter puncher that can get in range gave him troubles in the amateurs (and the Haye sparring clip everybody has seen). AJ as well, susceptible counters (like the one Whyte hurt him with). Klitschko may have ducked old Holyfield and is deathly afraid of counter punchers since Corrie Sanders. Holyfield is nice and choses his words but I can tell he thinks he could've taken these guys but I do think some of these dudes hit too hard to just take shots. Holyfield would gameplan anybody he thought could knock him out, like Mike Tyson and that's when he's at his best. Also keep in mind he ate Lennox Lewis's punches, that's a tough cookie.

How does this answer the OP question? Any idea? Even in Holyfield's prime, a big, long, athletic boxer/puncher on their game always gave Holyfield trouble. Deontay Wilder, Anthony Joshua, and even an aging Wladimir Klitschko all give Holyfield serious trouble, and a fight against a guy like Tyson Fury (even acknowledging the reality that his punch isn't all that) would be hell on Earth for Holyfield.

riddick bowe would be close to joshua's size if he got on the "cough" program and lifted weights like a lot of these guys. joshua's bones aren't really all that big if you know what you're looking at. he's got a built up body for sure. 100% that kind of muscle would be fatigued, if not totally useless, in the 10th round of a bowe - holyfield fight. let's also talk about skill. bowe was a potent offensive fighter with a terrific jab. joshua looks great against guys who probably wouldn't even be in contention in the 90's, but how's he going to look against hall of famers? i just don't see the tricks. these guys can't get around the size and the power. bowe had damn near the same size, hit like a mule, and had a much more dynamic / fluid style and presentation. if joshua's not able to dominate holyfield with his jab and clinch inside every single time he's probably going to lose. wladimir has been flattened by much, much lesser fighters than holyfield, who wasn't a titanic puncher but who knew how to keep his hands free, step to the side, and throw combinations. no way wladimir finishs the fight. holyfield woudl butt his way out of close clinches and turn wladimir into a school child.I don't disagree at all. The only guy I said on that list I think could beat him was Fury. All the rest it's a crap shoot. I find it tough to compare eras...

More than one.

I voted Ortiz but only because I didn't see Wlad on the list. Real Deal had real problems vs taller bigger guys who could keep him on the end of their jab.

A few on the list have a shot but one thing Holyfield could do in his prime was throw punches, get inside & the headbutts were always a threat. Holyfield could take a big punch too. His ability to headbutt without getting caught was remarkable. He could throw a guy right off his game plan & anger them so they start making mistakes. He lost a few good prime years to health issues but still a great fighter. The HWs are so big now so it is tough to compare eras. Just like any other sport. The players are bigger, faster, stronger, have better nutrition & better drugs, medical procedures are better to help recover & rehab injuries quicker, etc... riddick bowe would be close to joshua's size if he got on the "cough" program and lifted weights like a lot of these guys. joshua's bones aren't really all that big if you know what you're looking at. he's got a built up body for sure. 100% that kind of muscle would be fatigued, if not totally useless, in the 10th round of a bowe - holyfield fight. let's also talk about skill. bowe was a potent offensive fighter with a terrific jab. joshua looks great against guys who probably wouldn't even be in contention in the 90's, but how's he going to look against hall of famers? i just don't see the tricks. these guys can't get around the size and the power. bowe had damn near the same size, hit like a mule, and had a much more dynamic / fluid style and presentation. if joshua's not able to dominate holyfield with his jab and clinch inside every single time he's probably going to lose. wladimir has been flattened by much, much lesser fighters than holyfield, who wasn't a titanic puncher but who knew how to keep his hands free, step to the side, and throw combinations. no way wladimir finishs the fight. holyfield woudl butt his way out of close clinches and turn wladimir into a school child.

A few on the list have a shot but one thing Holyfield could do in his prime was throw punches, get inside & the headbutts were always a threat. Holyfield could take a big punch too. His ability to headbutt without getting caught was remarkable. He could throw a guy right off his game plan & anger them so they start making mistakes. He lost a few good prime years to health issues but still a great fighter. The HWs are so big now so it is tough to compare eras. Just like any other sport. The players are bigger, faster, stronger, have better nutrition & better drugs, medical procedures are better to help recover & rehab injuries quicker, etc...

Fury, Joshua, Weilder and Klichko beat him because their size is too much to over come. Luis Ortiz possibly.

Prime Fury would take him out, obviously. Holyfield would never get inside often enough to do any better than a wide points loss. To answer the actual question, AJ would cause him the most problems. He's a similar size to Lewis and probably hits harder. We haven't yet seen anyone who can stand up to him for 12 rounds, and I'm not sure Prime Holyfield would either. Think ole Windmills' defence is too ragged not to let Evander in with a shot or two. Kilt too old now, Ortiz too slow, Parker too easy to hit. Genuine lulz at the inclusion of PEDvetkin.

I'm amazed Brezeale is not on this list.

Fury's footwork is really impressive for a guy his size. Does he have the power and accuracy to discourage Holyfield though? I'm not sure.

Fury, Joshua and Klitschko. Not sure why David Haye wasnt included in the list but he to would beat Holyfield

Vladimir, the one closest to Lennox.