“He was wearing 20-ounce gloves”: Sylvester Stallone Shares He Was Almost Beaten to Death by a Heavyweight Slugger

Sylvester Stallone has an outstanding number of projects in his acting career that brought him major stardom. His rags-to-riches story has inspired many as the star struggled for years before his breakout role in 1976 as boxer Rocky Balboa in the first film of the Rocky series hit theatres. Since then, he has never looked back and continued to build a strong portfolio.

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While the franchise is the major reason why he entered the mainstream industry, this film also became the reason for his getting beaten to death by a heavyweight slugger.

Sylvester Stallone Faced Major Trouble Sparring With Earnie Shavers

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Sylvester Stallone had kicked off his great action career with the Rocky series that began in 1976. However, in the early 1980s, his career was not at a blooming stage which is when he decided to take on real-life boxers in the film. He has sparred with several real-life legends to prepare for his part but he recalled facing off with Earnie Shavers which didn’t go well.

“Earnie Shavers literally almost beat me to death without trying. [He was] wearing 20-ounce gloves. Imagine if he was angry!”

The latter was a professional boxer who is highly recognized as one of the hardest punchers in heavyweight boxing history. He was associated with Rocky III who passed away at the age of 78 last year. It was revealed that the heavyweight slugger was hesitant on fighting with the actor but he eventually agreed which only hurt the former.

Earnie Shavers Auditioned in Rocky III

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Shavers auditioned for the role of Clubber Lang before Mr. T bagged the role in Rocky III, which is when he went against Stallone.

He told ESPN,

“Got a call and went out to try out for this part in ‘Rocky,’ the Mr. T Rocky, I think. Got out there and got put up in a good hotel for a change. Then got in the ring with Mr. Stallone.”

He continued to share that he was not taking the face-off seriously which is when the actor asked him not to hold back.

“He’s not a real tall fellow, is he? Well, it don’t matter. Anyway we were circling; I was pulling my punches. He said, ‘Don’t hold back, Earnie. Hit me.’ I said, ‘I can’t do that, Mr. Stallone.'”

While he was initially hesitant about hitting the superstar, he eventually agreed.

“I could’ve, but I wanted that job, and I didn’t think that would help me get it. But he kept on pushing me, saying, ‘C’mon, show me something,’ and sort of hitting me, sort of. Finally, I said, ‘OK,’ and I give him a little one under the ribs, where the livers of boxers are.”

He later recalled that he was not selected which could have been something to do with the audition he did with Stallone. Despite the film getting mixed reviews, it grossed $270 million worldwide and gained a cult following.

Source: WorldBoxingNews, ESPN