Holyfield Says a Prime Mike Tyson Is the One Man Who Could Trouble Usyk

Evander Holyfield has picked out exactly one fighter he thinks could give Oleksandr Usyk real problems: a prime Mike Tyson. Speaking to Daily Mail Boxing, the two-time Tyson conqueror declined to name a winner in a fantasy meeting between the Ukrainian and 'Iron' Mike — and coming from a man who's usually happy to make a call, that hesitation says plenty.

It's not a small thing. Usyk sits at 25-0 (16 KO) as the lineal heavyweight king, a résumé built on twice beating Anthony Joshua and twice beating Tyson Fury. That's a division's worth of names on one ledger. Holyfield rates him among the all-time greats — the Ali, Louis, Holyfield tier — and still couldn't bring himself to pick against a peak Tyson.

Two Small Heavyweights

The comparison writes itself, which is probably why Holyfield reached for it. Neither man ever fit the modern heavyweight mold. Usyk carried a size disadvantage into both Joshua and Fury fights and won anyway. Tyson was undersized for his era too, and it never mattered — he ripped off his first 19 wins by knockout and owned the late 1980s through pure speed and violence.

The difference is how they get it done. Tyson overwhelmed people. Usyk dismantles them — footwork, angles, volume, the kind of technical patience that eventually breaks a bigger man down. Holyfield's read is that Usyk would need to be close to flawless for twelve rounds against a fighter who only needs one clean shot.

Worth remembering: the Tyson that Holyfield actually shared a ring with wasn't the definitive version. Holyfield stopped him in the 11th in 1996 for a genuine upset, then won the infamous rematch by third-round disqualification in 1997. Even that faded Tyson, Holyfield reckons, beats most heavyweights in history. The prime one is a different conversation entirely.

For Usyk, none of this is a criticism — it's the opposite. You only get compared to peak Tyson when you've run out of live opponents in your own era. Fury (36-2-1, 25 KO) got two cracks and came up short both times. Joshua (29-4, 26 KO) has since drifted into crossover territory, most recently stopping Jake Paul. The men built to beat Usyk today don't seem to exist. So the debate moves backward, into the archives, where the ghosts are the only ones left who might have a shot.