“I Was 13, I Was Starting to Get Ranked”: Years Before Unleashing the Boxing Icon ‘Rocky Balboa’, Sylvester Stallone Reveals the First Sport He Fell in Love With

Sylvester Stallone is a big-time boxing aficionado. In 1975, down and out, he saw Muhammad Ali‘s title defense against Chuck Wepner. It is said that it took Stallone three days to complete the first draft of the ‘Rocky‘ script. The rest, as they say, is history. The first of the series, ‘Rocky,’ saw its release across the United States in December 1976. A smash hit, it won three awards during the 1977 Academy Awards.

The story of an underdog boxer trying to make a living with dreams of making it big in the boxing world endeared both fans and critics. It still continues to captivate moviegoers. Even today, scores of aspiring boxers point to the film and its sequels as a major inspiration for them to take up the sport. But it might come as a shock to many. Despite having made one of the most recognizable movie characters ever based on the sport, Stallone’s initial interest wasn’t boxing. In a new Netflix documentary titled, ‘Sly,’ the Hollywood icon shared some of the least-known details of his life, including sports.

Sylvester Stallone, before the gloves

So both Sylvester Stallone and his younger brother Frank Stallone took viewers through their early lives, growing up in Hell’s Kitchen, New York. Subsequently, their parents divorced and went their separate ways. Stallone stayed back with his father in Maryland. Frank Stallone, on the other hand, went to live with his mother in Philadelphia. ‘Sly’ shared how the place where he lived was isolated—a complete countryside.

However, horses abounded the place. He told how, at the age of five or six, he started liking horses. However, the horses that his father brought home were mostly feeble and weak since he could not afford the robust and high-quality ones. But over some time, Stallone Senior took up affiliations with a local polo team. The Hollywood superstar shared that the horses at his disposal were declining, often needing medical attention. In contrast, the affluent ones who had ranches came with beautiful horses and trailers.

He continued, “….Some of them, if you pulled up too quickly, they’d go blind. So I started playing polo, like low level, but sandlot kind of polo, like low level. But I learned. Anyway, I started getting better, and better, and better. And then, [when] I was 13, I was starting to get ranked. I’m [going to] get nationally ranked.”

Later, he described how his father would beat him while he was playing a game of polo. The experience eventually led to him bidding goodbye to his equine friends.

A ‘Rocky’ journey

Three years after the first ‘Rocky‘, the second edition saw its release in 1979. The series continued until 1990, with fans watching ‘Rocky V.’ After that, it took nearly sixteen years for the release of the franchise’s last installment, ‘Rocky Balboa.’ In the meantime, Stallone saw parallel success with the ‘Rambo‘ series.

Read More: Tragic Story of Butkus: The Dog Sylvester Stallone Was Forced to Sell Before ‘Rocky’

Nine years after the last ‘Rocky‘ movie, in 2015, an offshoot series developed from one of the initial characters and ‘Creed,’ arrived. Stallone was part of the first two movies in the new franchise, ‘Creed.’ But by the third, he had reportedly moved out. Fans all over the world felt his absence.

What’s your take? Which of the six ‘Rocky’ movies is your favorite? Please share your views with us in the comments below.

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