Balboa was swiftly granted a
rematch by Lang. Former world champion Apollo Creed even oversaw Balboa's
training - teaching him his flowing style and working on the former
champion's speed. The training wasn't without problems. Creed
explained later to the press that he "had to give 'Rock' that look in his eyes back,
it wasn't about muscle, it was about mentality."
Despite being 34 and taking
a vicious knockout in his last fight, Balboa came back with a speed and
intensity that shook Lang and surprised fight fans around the world.
Balboa won by knockout after an exhausting 3 rounds - not only with his
own characteristic roughness and determination, but also with speed and style
reminiscent of former champion and living legend Apollo Creed.
September
15, 1982 - Rocky Balboa announced that he would continue his
professional boxing career under the management of Apollo Creed.
September
26, 1982 - Though unknown to the public and the press, Balboa and
Creed begin a tradition that would send them jet-setting around the United
States for the next five years. Sparing no expense, they met together to
spar - sometimes twice a week - in rented out gyms throughout the country.
Mary-Ann Creed later revealed in her
autobiography that her late husband's friendship with Rocky Balboa would
often "bring him back to me with cuts and bruises and a grin on his face.
I knew it was a good night if he had that grin on his face - it meant he
gave 'Rock' a run for his money. He never did get used to losing,
just like he said he wouldn't. He just never stopped being a
champion."
November 25, 1982 - March 28,
1987
"Eye Of The Tiger"
Balboa, under Creed's
business management and Tony "Duke" Burton's careful training, competed
aggressively as the world heavyweight champion for the next five years. Often, Creed trained
alongside Balboa. Balboa defended his WBA title fifteen times in
this period and even captured the newly created World Boxing Council's
version of the world heavyweight championship from a very young and very
fierce Mike Tyson. To the dismay of promoters, and Boxing experts
who thought Balboa was too old, Balboa unified the heavyweight
championship.
April 2,
1987 - The Soviet Union officially entered professional boxing in the
form of undefeated world amateur champion Ivan Drago to much dismay and
fear from the general public and boxing community. Creed quickly
arranged for an exhibition bout with the young fighter, seeing an
opportunity to relive his youth and make a patriotic statement as someone
deeply connected with Americana.
May 7, 1987 -
"Old Glory" Creed-Drago
Creed prepared a spectacle
for the Las Vegas crowd - bigger than his Bicentennial Super Fight,
including an original song by James Brown. Creed was battered and
bloody after the first round - his reflexes and body dulled by age and the
long and stiff punches of Ivan Drago. Late in the second round Creed
was knocked unconscious and died in the ring of sudden cardiac arrest
resulting from head trauma.
May 12,
1987 - Balboa agreed - despite objections by both sanctioning bodies
and even protestations by the State Department - to fight Ivan Drago on Christmas,
1987 in Moscow. There was also worldwide public outcry about
Balboa's alleged irresponsibility and recklessness.
May 15, 1987 - The
World Boxing Council threatened to strip Balboa of that organization's
heavyweight title, demanding that he fight Trevor Berbick before a
deadline of July 31. The
World Boxing Association soon followed and threatened to strip Balboa of
their championship, but only placed Balboa under "official reprimand"
following public outcry.
May 28, 1987 - Rocky
Balboa and his trainers are flown to a secluded region of the Soviet Union
and begin an intensive seven months of training.
July 31, 1987 - Balboa
was officially stripped of the WBC's world heavyweight championship.
Trever Berbick is awarded the title by the sanctioning body, reportedly
because of pressure from promoter George Washington Duke. Boxing observers criticized the decision
for damaging the sport's integrity at the benefit of promoters and
television executives.
August 7, 1987 -
Seeing the negative publicity generated from the WBC's stripping of the
world title, the WBA announced that it would suspend announcing the
disposition of Balboa's championship until December 31.
December 25, 1987 -
"The Fight" Balboa-Drago
Broadcasted over the open
airwaves, with the Soviets inviting every major media agency in the world
to attend,
the Balboa-Drago fight was the most watched event in boxing
history and one of the most watched professional sporting events of the
decade. The Soviets capitalized on the event's visibility and
naturally used the opportunity to showcase the strength and resolve of the
state.
The fight was brutal and
knockdowns of Balboa were frequent. Most experts and commentators said the fight
should have ended early in the sixth round, and indeed would have been ended had the fight been
anywhere else for safety reasons, because of the repetitive knockdowns and heavy cutting.
Balboa's determination and resilience surprised the Moscow crowd and the
millions of Soviet citizens watching - and even perhaps surprised the
American public watching at home.
By the time Balboa knocked
out Drago in the 15th round the Moscow crowd was cheering for both
fighters and there was a heavy "Rocky" chant. At the fight's
conclusion, Balboa gave a short speech about change while expressing his
love for the crowd - changing perceptions about Americans and America for
millions of Soviet citizens.
For Americans, the fight was
a catalyst for national pride and Balboa's sentiments about "change"
echoed what many people felt the world needed.
Culture studies researchers
later learned that the fight had a very profound impact upon the Soviet
psyche. Through a boxing match, Rocky
Balboa was able to walk through a door and into the homes and taverns of
the Soviet people - places pundits, politicians, and policy makers could
never even hope to
reach.
January
4, 1988 - Rocky Balboa returned home with his WBA
championship rightfully intact and a challenger, Union Cane, already pressing him.
Rumors of medical complications were quick to spread as Balboa
characteristically lingered while hinting at retirement. Reports
later surfaced that Balboa was recommended to never fight again due to
indications of brain damage. Some close to the fighter
later described symptoms that described post-traumatic stress
disorder. His title
was officially vacated two months later.
February 23, 1988 -
Financial problems collapsed Balboa's estate and he is forced to move
back to the same obscure Philadelphia neighborhood he lived in back in 1975.
March
9, 1988 - The Balboa family began to operate the former gym of
Mickey Goldmill, where Balboa had started his career. The gym quickly became popular throughout the region but
revenue was meager.
December 3, 1988 -
Balboa started managing young boxer, and future heavyweight champion,
Tommy Gunn. Balboa spends an increasing amount of time with the
fighter over the next year, and he gains an impressive following as a
student of the still famous Rocky Balboa.
April
14, 1989 - Union Cane was awarded both the WBA and WBC
championship in a reunification bout promoted by George Washington Duke.
December 26, 1989 -
Tommy Gunn signed with George Washington Duke and severed all ties with Rocky
Balboa. The decision was an unpopular one among Tommy Gunn's large
fan base - which had largely been Rocky Balboa fans.
January 20, 1990 -
Tommy Gunn fought Union Cane for the unified world heavyweight
championship and easily defeated the unusually unimpressive Union Cane.
Despite the victory, the public and boxing community was largely
unimpressed.
A distressed Tommy Gunn later assaults Rocky Balboa
in his Philadelphia neighborhood. Eyewitnesses reported that
Balboa had no trouble fighting the champion bare fisted, though the
retired fighter was now aged 42 and had been out of a serious training
regimen for years.
September, 1998 -
The Balboa family closed Mighty Mick's Gym for the final time. The
bronze Rocky statue - thought to be a new and permanent symbol of the city
when it was erected - was also removed from the Philadelphia Museum of Art
by museum managers. There was little outcry from the city government
or public.
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Rocky: The man who represents the
courageous spirit of the great city of Philadelphia and the brotherhood of
its people.
