Elmer Ray v the best heavyweights of the last 25years, 6'2", weighing in the low to middle 190's, how would he do?:think
A win and a loss to both Walcott and Ezzard Charles at the tail end of his career iirc. A possible stoppage at the hands of Lennox Lewis. I think perhaps a KO loss to Tyson? I think he was probably 180lbs at best, and iirc, a great puncher, I don't think HW would have been the best division for him in the last 25 years tbh. Cruiser, probably with much better results. Just my thoughts on the little I know of him.
I think that he would have done well enough, in the division as a whole. He obviously had a good punch, and I think he had the frame to fill out like Holyfield, if he wanted to go down that route. Add to this the fact that he would have had management and financial backing from early in his career, and you should be able to steer him towards some sort of success. As in his own time however, he would come up short against the best in the division, and would need the right breaks to move past contender status.
I think he hit harder than Walcott or Charles, and at 6'2" tall had some size to him. But his ability to take it was an issue. With no film, its hard to tell. He could have been a bit like Herbie Hide. Good enough to upset a top guy, unlikely to stay highly ranked for a long period of time.
With today's training and nutrition he would have grown to 6'4"-6'6" 230-245ish along with an invincible jaw due to extra bone growth
