Rocky (R3) vs Drago (R4)

Spiral-Force

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Rocky (R3, trained by Apollo)

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VS

Drago (R4, first appearance)

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Rules: Standard boxing rules
Rounds: 15 (3 mins each, 1 min breaks)
Location: The MGM Grand
Intel: Both have intel on each other
Event: Title Match

Will Drago chop Balboa down and become the new world champion, or will Rocky take him out with the eye of the tiger and retain his title?
 

Captain Cadaver

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Considering the general tone around Drago's character in the movie or reaching the peak of what could be considered human strength, coupled with the joke that went about at the time of IV's release of how Rocky would need to fight an alien after having ran out of possible earthly challengers all point to Drago being a step above any prior opponent. That said, Rocky gets KO'd without doubt, though his tenacity would probably keep him going for maybe 5-6 rounds if it's the Drago who fought Apollo. Post-training Drago would probably only need about 3-4 rounds at most.
 

Spiral-Force

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This version of Rocky has much better movement and defence than in the 4th film, though his training wasn't nearly as strength-oriented as it was in the 4th. His more skilled style against Clubber in their 2nd fight was quite effective and lead to a quick victory, but that was largely due to Clubber's one-dimensional style of throwing hooks + his poor stamina. Drago has better conditioning than Clubber and is more versatile, and according to Drago's manager: "There is no one who can match his [Drago's] strength, his endurance or his aggressiveness" - This was stated early in Rocky 4, so Rocky beating him later in the movie doesn't necessarily mean that this quote is contradictory to Rocky 3 fighter levels. With that said, my money's on Drago, but considering this Rocky was able to take plenty of explosive shots from Clubber (who was stated multiple times to be able to kill Rocky if they fight toe to toe) without getting anything beyond superficial damage, Rocky ought to last a high amount of rounds with his insane durability and strategic approach before being put away.


Captain Cadaver said:
if it's the Drago who fought Apollo.
I said "first appearance" in the opening post. Then again, there's probably only a minimal difference between initial Drago and the one that fought Apollo.
 

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[mention]Captain Cadaver[/mention] Do you think Rocky could potentially win if he has the motivation that he had in their Rocky 4 fight?
 

Captain Cadaver

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Most likely not. Drago was completely surprised at Rocky's durability and stamina, despite the fact that the Soviets should have significant data on Rocky's capabilities from recordings of his previous matches. There's also Creed confirming Apollo won the fight at the end of Rocky III, which wouldn't be the case if Rocky were able to offer anywhere near as bad a beatdown as Drago did. You could argue that Rocky held back due to it being a friendly spar, but given Apollo's pride, I doubt it.
 

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Captain Cadaver said:
Most likely not. Drago was completely surprised at Rocky's durability and stamina, despite the fact that the Soviets should have significant data on Rocky's capabilities from recordings of his previous matches.
Clubber wasn't able to push Rocky (trained by Apollo) far enough to the point that the limit of his durability and stamina could really be tested. Rocky was still fired up and ready to go after Clubber was knocked down.

Captain Cadaver said:
There's also Creed confirming Apollo won the fight at the end of Rocky III, which wouldn't be the case if Rocky were able to offer anywhere near as bad a beatdown as Drago did. You could argue that Rocky held back due to it being a friendly spar, but given Apollo's pride, I doubt it.
Considering Apollo wasn't doing any serious training after Rocky 2, it's hard to believe that he could beat a Rocky that is more skilled and better conditioned than the one he lost to in the 2nd film. Their 3rd fight was a mere sparring match with no fancy rules or regulations. The definition of sparring is to "make the motions of boxing without landing heavy blows, as a form of training." - Apollo's pride was on the line, so he may have been giving it his all, but Rocky didn't really have a reason to.
 

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I'm biased, but I would totally give it to Drago. Rocky would be a hard guy to put down, especially with his quick defense in the third movie, but eventually he'd get hit. Drago has far more stamina than Clubber, so I don't think he'd gas out before putting Rocky down.
 

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Pretty much agreed. Got Drago winning, but it'd take a lot of time and effort for him to do so. I wouldn't be shocked if someone had Rocky winning though, given he's known for overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds.
 

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How would Rocky not win? He beat Drago in his older incarnation.
 

Pyro

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Rocky was focused on durability and strength in the fourth movie. Notice how his defensive style was completely different than the third movie. He was nimble and fast in Rocky 3, but he was stalwart and tanky in Rocky 4. You may even be able to argue that the R3 style wouldn't have worked since that was basically what Apollo tried and he got his ass killed, although his rustiness, age, and physical strength were all factors in that loss.
 

Spiral-Force

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SSJ7 Gogeta said:
You may even be able to argue that the R3 style wouldn't have worked since that was basically what Apollo tried and he got his ass killed
Balboa's physical attributes take the effectiveness of this style to a whole new level though. The Rocky in this matchup is stronger, faster, more energetic, more evasive, and waaay better at absorbing punches than R4 Apollo. He also doesn't have any ring-rust and would take the fight more seriously than Creed did. His technique may not be able to secure a victory, but it'd definitely be troublesome to deal with, seeing as even R4 Rocky was able to get many clean shots on Drago despite his clumsy movements.
 

sei'taer

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There's no way, it took two training montages to beat drago, where as in Rocky 3 he only got one.
 

Spiral-Force

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sei'taer said:
There's no way, it took two training montages to beat drago, where as in Rocky 3 he only got one.
Rocky actually had two training montages in Rocky 3; he trained with Mickey's supervision the 1st time, and confirmed that he was in the best shape of his life during an interview leading up to the 1st Clubber fight.

Then he got huge gains from his training with Apollo, as can be deduced by the difference in performances between his 2 fights with Lang. (And the Lang he fought the 2nd time was stronger than before)

By the way, the Drago that Rocky beat is significantly superior to Drago at the start of the film; in preparation for the final fight, Ivan went through training that had similar intensity to Rocky's, and in addition to that, he was given a steroid injection to enhance him further.
 

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I can't get over the fact that Rocky beat him. Smaller, older, weaker, more beat up, less polished. It doesn't make sense.
 

Spiral-Force

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Mystic Omega said:
I can't get over the fact that Rocky beat him. Smaller, older, weaker, more beat up, less polished. It doesn't make sense.
Rocky's damage soak ability is pretty much superhuman, and his punching power was great enough to gradually break Drago down. Drago even commented: "He's not human... he's like a piece of iron".

That's just how he's portrayed. It's a movie, so the feats don't have to be realistic.
 

Mystic

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I know, but it ruins the immersion when they're like "here's a near superhuman Russian fighter" and Rocky pulls a random zenkai for the sake of the fight to beat him. I don't know. It doesn't sit well with me.
 

Spiral-Force

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I know, but this is a battle thread, so abilities & statements should be taken into account regardless of the writing quality.
 

Pyro

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I don't believe Rocky would have won that fight either, but I just have to accept that his heart and durability moved him forward. He really should have been out after a few punches to the dome from Drago considering Drago's ridiculously powerful punching strength, but like the big Russian said, Rocky was a big ol' piece of iron. I want to believe Rocky's age would play a part considering that was a part of Apollo's complaining at the start of the movie, but R5 and RB showed even when he's advanced far beyond normal years for the sport, he can take a beating and still come out on top or at least put up a fight.
 

Spiral-Force

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A lot of people consider Rocky 4 to be when things started to get out of hand in terms of Rocky's capability, but when you look back at Rocky 1, the thought of a low tier bum managing to progress to the point of going the distance with the undefeated heavyweight champion of the world [Apollo] is quite beyond the norm. Then Rocky 2 comes along, in which he takes down an Apollo that is far more serious and prepared than before. Then things get even crazier in Rocky 3, with him holding his own against a guy that is stated to have "superhuman strength" [Thunderlips], and eventually beating a guy that was built up to have the power to kill Rocky [Clubber]. His bizarre tougness was a main theme ever since the franchise's inception.
 

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