The tide turns, and Rocky is able to overpower the winded and outfoxed Lang, landing blow after blow and dodging Lang's attempted punches before knocking him out. Rocky is declared the winner and his title as Heavyweight Champion is restored.
Tony Burton as Tony "Duke" Evers: Apollo Creed's father figure, friend, trainer, and manager, who helps Apollo train Rocky. Mr. T as James "Clubber" Lang: The underdog challenger who beats Rocky in a championship fight, amidst the unexpected death of Mickey.
While meeting up at Adrian's, Rocky is surprised when Donnie mentions a third fight between him and Apollo that happened behind closed doors (Rocky III) and presents himself as Apollo's son. Rocky compliments his father's boxing ability and reveals that Apollo won their third match.
Immediately preceding the final round, Rocky and Drago meet in the middle of the ring where the two men touch gloves as Drago says to Rocky, "To the end". Rocky finally defeats Drago by KO in the dying seconds of the 15th and final round.
Mickey's Death Makes Adrian More Important To The Rocky Franchise. With Mickey's death, the torch can be passed to other important people in Rocky's life who can offer him guidance, like Adrian.
Rocky III (13/13) Movie CLIP - Rocky Beats Clubber (1982) HD
Did Rocky tell Mikey he won?
Rocky tells his trainer that the fight ended in a second-round knockout but does not tell Mickey that he lost. Rocky then tries to convince him that they need to go to the hospital, but instead he keeps talking, some of his last words being "I love you, kid", and dies.
In Rocky III however, his headstone lists his date of birth as 1905, making him 71 in the original film. Furthermore, the headstone lists his date of death as 1981, which implies that he was 76; the same age he was four years previously (in the original film).
Rocky lands the last punch & Dixon wins a split decision. During the end credits, there is an acknowledgment of the iconic status the Rocky series has achieved, through a montage of people following in Rocky's footsteps, charging up the front steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Tommy wins the heavyweight title by knocking out Union Cane in the first round, but is booed by spectators while they cheer for Rocky Balboa after the fight and hounded by reporters. They insist Cane was nothing but a "paper champion", because Cane didn't win the title from Balboa.
Mason "The Line" Dixon won a split decision. The final score cards were: 95-94 Dixon, 94-95 Balboa, 95-94 Dixon. Interestingly, in the alternate ending on the DVD, Rocky wins the match (with the score: 95-94 Dixon, 94-95 Balboa, 94-95 Balboa).
Rocky lost everything his manager, his title, his self respect and mostly he lost his edge! Like Apollo said "Now, when we fought, you had that eye of the tiger, man; the edge! And now you gotta get it back, and the way to get it back is to go back to the beginning." That's what I love.
In a final training scene, Rock beats Apollo in another foot race and the two joyously celebrate at the return of Rocky's edge and his spirit. The rematch is held at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
In the original Rocky, he is 30 (meaning he was born in 1945). In Rocky II, he turned 31. If Rocky III takes place three years after Rocky II, Rocky should be 34, which is exactly what age he is (as pointed out on TV). All of this serves to illustrate that the film is set in 1979 and '80.
Both men, exhausted, trade punches until they knock each other down. As both men struggle to regain their feet, Rocky is able to will himself up at the count of 9 while Apollo collapses from exhaustion, giving Rocky the win by knockout, making him the new heavyweight champion.
Despite being the face of the Rocky franchise, Stallone chose not to appear in Creed III due to creative differences with producer Irwin Winkler as well as with Jordan, although he is still a producer on the film. According to Stallone, the film had a much darker tone that he didn't agree with.
Both fighters trade blows, before Balboa seizes an opening, unleashing a series of vicious blows, eventually knocking him out. Rocky gives a victory speech, acknowledging that the local crowd's disdain of him had turned to mutual respect during the fight.
As Jergens declares Creed the winner by virtue of a split decision, Rocky and Adrian embrace and profess their love for each other, not caring about the outcome of the fight.
While Rocky 7 could have been exciting, it's a good thing that it never happened. After the franchise's worst movie, Rocky V, was released in 1990, the franchise went on a hiatus for 16 years, only returning with Rocky Balboa in 2006.
Rocky Balboa proudly holds the world heavyweight boxing championship, but a new challenger has stepped forward: Drago, a six-foot-four, 261-pound fighter who has the backing of the Soviet Union.
This places the events in Rocky IV roughly five years after the end of Rocky III (which was set in 1979 and '80), and approximately 10 years after the original Rocky.
Soon after the fight Rocky reunites with Mickey for one last time for he could barely talk, his last words were, "I love you, kid. I love you," followed by, "Your instinct..." before Goldmill finally succumbed to a heart attack.
In autumn of 2001, Adrian discovered that she was dying from ovarian cancer. She underwent chemotherapy, but it was not enough to save her life. Adrian died peacefully in her sleep on January 11, 2002, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, aged 51, with her family by her side.
