Paul Lincoln was never a fully blown heavyweight. Mid heavyweight, possibly even light heavyweight looking at opponents under his own name. Worked in Southern England for Dale Martin
But looking at the earliest Dr Death appearances,
July 1959 against welterweight Roy LaRue in Derby
Sept 1959 against lightweight Pat Kloke in Livetpool
November 1959 against middleweight Terry Sparkes in Hull
Makes me wonder who was the original Dr Death?
I remember the 1960’s News of The World expose revealing that “Dr Death” lived in Clockface Road, St Helen’s, Lancashire, the article actually naming him.
Popular rumour at the time was that he was also a struck off doctor who had killed a patient, hence the mask!
Around 1964 I recall a contest at Preston Public Hall between Dr Death and the red clad Professor, of whom it was said, defeated his opponents by the application of mathematics. 😊
Max was ahead of the curve exploiting a "Peak Dr Death". There were plenty of them about.
Those wrestlers are all too light for Paul Lincoln. There's no reason that someone else could have been the first Dr Death and then Lincoln made it more successful.
Jim Lewis and Kito Tani were also 1959 opponents of early Dr Death at Hull.