Spider Rico even tho he lost to Rocky..Spider had a nothing to losedo anything to win attitude hence the head butt he ga
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Asmodeus_10 — 14 years ago(December 09, 2011 05:48 AM)
Everyone seems to be assuming that Drago was in his prime in Rocky IV. Dolph Lundgren was only 27 when the movie was made and his character might have been even younger. He probably would have continued to improve for 3-5 years after this fight and could have easily defeated the other 4. I think he would have been better than Rocky was in his prime.
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AGood — 14 years ago(February 04, 2012 08:57 AM)
On reading the topic I thought Drago easily.
Now on reading it I am not sure.
The one thing I remember from Rocky 1 was that Apollo never mind losing, never mind someone going the disatance against him (meaning every win was a KO) he had also never even been on the ground once before.
Apollo would have fought against people like Clubba Lang easily, and likely against people like Drago (massive power punchers).
In Rocky 1 he was overconfident, did not train and thought Rocky would be a push over.
In Rocky 2 he was mad angry and could have won on points again but went for the knockout and ended up losing just to Rocky.
My list
Apollo was the best. And should have won in Rocky II if he did not let pride take over going for the knockout.
Rocky was not the best he just had determination. When he did not have determination he was mediocre.
Drago
Tommy Gun
Clubber Lang
Mason. -
AGood — 14 years ago(February 08, 2012 07:34 AM)
I rank him higher as Rocky Trained him. And because as it has been pointed out above when Rocky went at Clubber with a strategy he won convincingly.
Clubber has no stamina. He is a power puncher.
I do not think it will be an easy win. To be honest when coming up with it I was not sure who to put above. But I thought given that Rocky Trained him it would be disrespectful to put him below Clubber. And given Rocky poured all his effort into training him I do think Tommy would pip the win vs Clubber. -
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btemple-3 — 13 years ago(April 20, 2012 02:41 PM)
I think it depends on what you mean by the best? Best record? Best fighter?
I think by far Apollo was the best because he was as close to Mohammed Ali as far as talent, class, and respect for the sport. Not to mention that after losing to Rocky, he wanted to come back and train him against clubber. It takes a champion to accept defeat and move on.
I think Dixon was probably 2nd in line as far as a naturally talented boxer and athlete. With his speed and athleticism he could have played any sport. Only one issue I have with him is he really is a light heavyweight and probably shouldn't have been in the same category as all the rest of Rocky's opponents.
Clubber was just an angry bruiser with no respect for anyone except himself. He was extremely strong and intimidating but proved to be a lesser boxer losing to a smaller Rocky.
Drago was certainly big and strong, but I feel because he cheated with Steroids, we don't really know what his natural strength and abilities are without the help. So for that he gets demoted drastically.
Tommy Gunn in my opinion was just a joke. He would have lost to all the above if he fought any of them. Including Rocky in which he lost a street fight to. In order to be a champion, at least by Rocky's standards, you need to have heart. None of Rocky's opponents except Apollo had that in my opinion. they were all out for themselves where as Rocky didn't just think about himself. He was classy and went about his sport in the most professional classy way possible. -
bigal_a — 13 years ago(April 21, 2012 12:04 PM)
Apollo definitely the best. Rocky would have beaten several of his opponents a lot easier if he hadn't walked straight into so many punches, but Apollo was a natural, fluent boxer who could dodge and weave, and cover up if hurt.
Let's face it, prime Apollo would have trashed Clubber, Mason and Tommy with one hand tied behind his back (not to mention the hapless Union Caine). He would have had the smarts to rope-a-dope Clubber - after all, he was the one to point out to Rocky that Clubber had never been the full 15 rounds with anyone.
Apollo would have had his hands full with Ivan Drago, but he would have been much quicker and nimbler, and my guess is that if he had boxed Ivan rather than tried to knock him out, he would easily have outpointed him. After all, even when not at his best (almost certainly prior to the beating he got in "Rocky" - still a fight he won) he shows at first that he can totally flat-foot Ivan, dancing around and scoring at will. It's only when he tries to mix it up that he comes a cropper.
Young Rocky would have destroyed Dixon and Gunn right from the off with sheer determination, a sledgehammer punch and a concrete jaw. I don't think they'd have given him much trouble. He only lost to Clubber because he didn't take his training seriously (I think even without Apollo's "Eye of the Tiger" training he'd have won, but he would have been beaten up a lot uglier).
I have to say that he looks a lot worse after facing Apollo than after any of his other opponents, and he only just managed to edge it in the rematch by beating the count at 9, and Apollo almost held it together long enough to get up.
Clubber and Drago are clean, brutal knockouts (although Rocky looks a bit 'roidy himself in Rocky V), and Dixon is way, way younger and faster than Rocky , and he connects far, far more often than he gets tagged, and even then he only wins a split.
Apollo shows he can dig down deep and win a total slugging brawl with a fired-up, young Rocky. He can take it as well as dish it out.
For my money, prime Apollo Creed is prime Rocky's best opponent, indeed the only one who's really a match for him, with the possible exception of a steroid-pumped Ivan Drago, whose natural performance is therefore in doubt. -
kimmostar — 13 years ago(May 05, 2012 12:49 PM)
- Apollo Creed; Fast, powerful, precise, passionate, endurant and intelligent. The ultimate boxer.
- Ivan Drago; Nearly impossible to beat. He killed Apollo (way past-prime) in two rounds. It took Rocky 15 rounds to tire him off an ended up giving Rocky multiple concussion during the fight. If he was real he would've killed a lot of boxers with his punching power but that wasn't his only strength.
- Clubber Lang; Powerful, strong, fast, aggressive, passionate. If his sanity was there he might have frightening potential. It's hard to say how well he would actually do in terms of endurance but it was clear that he wasn't prepared for the 2nd fight at all, thinking Rocky would give the same performance than in the first one. He's the 2nd hardest hitter after Drago, absolutely destroying his opposition.
- Mason "The Line" Dixon; 33-0 record speaks for itself. He has been impossible to beat during his career. His popularity suffers because of winning so fast and easy most of his fights but he's just that good. It was clear that he wasn't prepared for someone like Rocky, underestimating him completely. A great fighter that would need more challening opponents like Rocky was. The series' most realistic boxer.
- Tommy "The Machine" Gunn; It's hard to say much anything about him because he mostly fought fights with easy opponents Rocky did the same than Mickey did with Rocky between II and III, protecting him. He won the championship against Union Cane, that seemed like a paper champ to me. Still, it was clear that Tommy had potential. He just didn't use it right.
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Bernnard_Black — 13 years ago(August 30, 2012 08:58 AM)
1: Drago. Not the best technique, but he'd had a good career. Couple that with his impossibly strong punches and long reach, and you get Rocky's toughest opponent.
2: Apollo. Beat Rocky once, and only barely lost the second time. He gets second place only because at this point, Rocky is still relatively inexperienced. Rocky from Rocky IV would have beaten Apollo fairly quickly.
3: Clubber. Not too bright, but strong, tough, and aggressive.
4: Mason. World champ, and able to fight 15 rounds with a busted hand.
5: Tommy. Basically, a strong but stupid punk with no real talent.
Here's to the health of Cardinal Puff. -
Sfondi — 13 years ago(September 01, 2012 10:33 PM)
tommy gun was beep laaaammeeeee
Movies i hope are made:
http://i49.tinypic.com/2eb5puu.jpg -
L0GAN5 — 13 years ago(October 14, 2012 04:02 PM)
I'd go with Apollo, he was the finished article as far as boxing goes. Rocky was never in his class as a fighter: in the first film he doesn't take Rocky seriously and pays the price for it; in the second he means business and gives Rocky the hiding of his life, and Rocky only wins by taking him by surprise by turning southpaw. He won using a dirty tactic.
After that, the next best is probably Dixon, he's paid his dues and the only reason Rocky doesn't get pasted is because Dixon injures his hand.
After that you have Clubber. Rocky underestimated Clubber in their first tie, but ultimately Clubber could dish it out but couldn't take it.
Then you have Tommy. Tommy was still paying his dues and Rocky knew his weaknesses.
Drago comes in last. Basically he beat a has-been and an ageing champion. He wouldn't have gone the distance with peak Apollo, or even Dixon. He could hit hard but he was basically a top-level amateur, kind of like the level Rocky was at going into his fights with Creed. Tactically he was naive, and wouldn't have lasted long against a tactically sound and fast fighter. -
eyebrowmorroco — 13 years ago(March 30, 2013 10:46 PM)
Apollo was the best? I dont know somehow I dont see the best - in his absolute prime - getting taken to the stretch by a bum boxer with no big-time fight experience. The best would have clinically dispatched him. Thats a huge blemish, and should by default restrict him to nothing more than #2 in the series. The same boxer, several years past his best, shouldn't lose his life in the ring to a man without technique. Drago was crap. The guy was a poleaxe. And Dixon and Gunn are street punks, they dont figure.
The best IMO was Clubber. He had the power of a Drago with the cavalier style of a Creed. Lets not forget, by the time Rocky faced him, he had accumulated some big fight experience. Its a different proposition to face a guy from relative obscurity to facing a guy who is the world champ and has beaten about ten guys to retain, even if they are subpar. His process is that of a seasoned fighter, his physical training, his mental preparation. Clubber not only faced him, he defeated him soundly. -
Huskie_Jon — 12 years ago(July 19, 2013 08:45 AM)
In his prime, Apollo Creed - The Master of Disaster, won the title and held on to it vs. the best competition of the day. These were real contenders, not a bunch of patsies, like Mick was setting Rocky up with.
He knocked out 47 opponents. Noone else in the Rocky series, not even Rocky, came close to accomplishing that. All of Rocky's other opponents were flashes in the pan. Rocky not only knocked Clubber Lang out in the rematch, he knocked out the rest of Clubber's short career. That's why you never heard from Clubber again. The same with Rocky's other opponents. Just flashes in the pan.
The problem was that Creed was already past his prime in the first Rocky movie, he just did not know it, or he refused to accept it. In his prime, there is no way a clumsy unknown amature from Philly takes him the distance. Then he lost to Rocky in a rematch. Washed up! Somone should have told him, "Give it up, Apollo! Your best days are behind you. Retire, before you really get hurt."
If Drago had fought Creed when Creed was in his prime, Apollo would have danced circles around him, or rope-a-doped him for fifteen rounds, until Drago stumbled over himself.
Judging Apollo Creed by only looking at his performances against Rocky and Drago would be like evaluating Muhammad Ali by only looking at his fights against Trevor Berbick and Larry Holmes. I suppose there could be a Rocky 0 movie about the rise of Apollo Creed, but it could get boring just watching him win all the time. Viewers prefer the underdog
A dope trailer is no place for a kitty.
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bigpapapumpct — 12 years ago(November 03, 2013 02:44 PM)
Any way you want to cut it, no one gave Rocky a beating like Drago. Drago was the toughest fight for sure. And for those who brush it off as steroids. steroids don't make you good. The way Drago manhandled Rocky was proof that he was a beast with or without steroids. The roids only made him physically stronger.
As far as him being the toughest Rocky was at his peak both physically and mentally in Rocky IV. He had accumulated a vast wealth of knowledge from both Mick and Apollo by that point. He knew everything there was to know. But even then, Drago still massacred him for most of the fight.
Drago > All other villains
