DOLPH LUNDGREN as IVAN DRAGO
in ROCKY IV.
in ROCKY IV.
courtesy of wrappup.com
"WAIT... WHAT? THAT ISN'T IVAN DRAGO THAT IS THE UTAH JAZZ FORWARD ANDREI KIRILENKO."
I am so firing my editor.
Nicknamed the Siberian Express, Ivan Drago is the pride of the Soviet Union. Amateur boxing champion and Olympic Gold Medalist. With an amateur record of 100-0 (100 KO) The guy is as dominant as they come. Juiced out of his mind his body is a machine packing twice as much power in his punches than the average heavyweights.
Unlike the flamboyant Apollo Creed and the brash Clubber Lang -- Rocky's opponents in previous movies who are abrupt and tell it how it is—Ivan Drago is a quiet man who lets his fists do the talking when inside the ring. Driven by his desire to be the best at all costs, this single-minded manner in which he pursues this goal deprives him of his humanity. Many viewers and critics have suggested that Drago was meant to symbolize America's perception of Russia: immense, powerful, and emotionless. This is made evident by his cold-blooded pulverization of Creed in an exhibition match as well as by his callous reaction towards news of his opponent's death. Drago generally allows his wife and trainers to talk on his behalf to the press. The character only speaks short sentences, throughout the film, all terse, short statements.
Drago's trainers, Sergei Igor Rimsky (George Rogan) and Manuel Vega (James "Cannonball" Green), along with his wife Ludmilla (Brigitte Nielsen), are convinced that he can defeat any boxer. Drago enters professional heavyweight boxing in the beginning of the movie, as stated by the press. Former champion Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), now 42 years old, comes out of retirement to challenge Drago to an exhibition match, promoted by Creed's former rival Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone). Creed arrives to the ring wearing his signature Stars & Stripes boxing garb to "Living in America," sung by James Brown, upon a huge stage that is lowered into the ring. Before the match begins, Drago ominously mutters "You will lose."
During the fight, Apollo is no match for the Russian fighter. In Apollo's corner, Rocky contemplates whether to throw in the towel and surrender the fight (against Creed's earlier instructions), but instead he decides to hold onto the towel. Defenseless, Apollo continues to absorb blows to the head until Drago finally kills him with a final blow to the head. Drago exhibits no remorse about what happened to the former champion, simply stating in an interview after the fight that "if he dies, he dies."
To avenge Apollo's death, Rocky travels to the Soviet Union to fight Drago on his home turf in Moscow. The fight eventually becomes a long, drawn-out war between Rocky and Drago, and to everyone's shock, Rocky manages to severely damage Drago, and the crowd begins to cheer for Rocky, whereas at the start of the fight, they were booing him. Drago's promoter — a Soviet/German official — insults him, claiming that by allowing an American to fight so admirably on Russian soil, Drago is disgracing the Soviet Union. The enraged Drago grabs him by the throat, throws him out of the ring and proclaims he only fights for himself. Rocky wins by KO in the 15th and final round in a dramatic ending.
According to Rocky: The Ultimate Guide, Ivan Drago wasn't permitted to resume his boxing career after his loss to Rocky Balboa because of the special circumstance that he could not officially turn pro in the USSR. Ivan Drago turned professional after the fall of the Soviet Union and accumulated a record of 31-1 (31 KO) while also winning a portion of the Heavyweight title. He never unified the title or fought the very top contenders (as a pro) because of promotional politics. It is possible that Drago defeated Tommy Gunn for the Heavyweight Championship. Drago seems to have retired the Champion, perhaps due to lack of success. The Heavyweight title may have gone to Mason Dixon's unnamed opponent. His only defeat as a pro or an amateur fighter was at the hands of Rocky Balboa. -Wikipedia
ONE OF THE MOST INTIMIDATING FIGURES IN MOVIE HISTORY.
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