Upon winning the silver at the 1991 Championships, he was approached on the spot by the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world Evander Holyfield and his handler Lou Duva, who noted Kurnyavka's aggressive style and offered him a full-time job as a sparring partner in the Team Holyfield camp, $10,000 monthly salary plus covering all other expenses. Holyfield's team was then in negotiations with Tyson's team on arranging the superfight, and Kurnyavka might have been quite useful for it. However, he didn't turn pro.