Patterson at 175 though would absolutely spark Bivol, I was watching some of both of them the other night and Patterson at heavyweight was still faster with better combinations and body shots
Seeing how Callum Johnson heavily floored Beterbiev with a single left hook and had him on bambi legs. A leaping left hook from Patterson would send Beterbiev to the shadow realm.
Interesting points. Also, aside from the PEDs, there are probably plenty of legal supplements used today that weren't available in years past. Just off a quick Google search: average life expectancy in the US went from 47.3 years (1900), to 78.4 years today. There's also an average height difference of about 4 inches. That of course has more to do than just PEDs. General nutrition, better Healthcare access, and better hygiene are the main reasons given. So those are a few other things to consider if you were to drop a Holyfield or RJJ back into previous eras, or if you were to drop a Louis or Dempsey into the 90s or beyond. Interesting that the average bone density is 20% less now than in 1900 due to the more physical lifestyles back in the day. That's something that would be a factor in the ring I suppose.
Athletes would have greater bone density than the average person. Whether there's much of a difference in bone density between today's athletes and those from 1900 isn't as clear, and if there is any difference at all, how much would it come into play in a fight? I really don't know, just found it interesting.
Interestingly, bone density is strongly correlated to life expectancy. Lifting weights is very important for older people for that reason.
Seeing how Floyd Patterson actually did get shadow realmed and dropped multiple times by fighters worse than Beterbiev, then clearly Beterbiev mauls and stops him without much trouble.