Headliners · Street level
Ippo Makunouchi vs Rocky Balboa
Pure boxing, pure heart: a Japanese featherweight who hits like a truck against the man who never stays down.
Tale of the tape
| Hajime no Ippo | Universe | Rocky |
|---|---|---|
| Street level | Tier | Street level |
| The Dempsey Roll and a chin made of stone | Strength | Refuses to stay down, no matter what |
| Too kind, and his opponents know it | Weakness | Slow feet and a habit of taking punishment |
| 1–0 | Record on Versus | 0–1 |
The Arena
It began as an exhibition. A Japanese boxer was visiting Philadelphia to train, and the old man who ran the gym down the street asked whether he wanted to spar with a local legend. Ippo bowed so deeply his forehead nearly touched the canvas. Rocky laughed and told him to relax, it was just a bit of fun.
Then the bell rang, and neither of them knew how to do anything halfway. The gym filled up as word spread. By round three there were people standing on the stairs.
Round One
Rocky came forward the way he always has, chin down, swinging heavy hooks, willing to take three to give one. Ippo met him in the middle with the peek-a-boo guard, bobbing and weaving under the hooks, then exploding up with a liver blow that bent the bigger man in half.
Rocky smiled through his mouthguard. He had been hit harder by men twice Ippo’s size. He clinched, leaned his weight onto the smaller fighter, and dug short uppercuts into his ribs. Ippo had never been hit by anyone this stubborn. By the end of round four, both men were bleeding over one eye.
The Turn
Round seven. Rocky had found his rhythm and was walking Ippo down along the ropes, every hook landing on gloves or forearms but landing, wearing him out. The old man in Rocky’s corner yelled to keep the pressure on.
Then Ippo planted his feet and began to weave: left, right, left, faster, his body tracing an infinity sign, fists riding the momentum like a pendulum. The Dempsey Roll. Each punch arrived from a new angle with the weight of his whole body behind it, and Rocky took six of them before he could even raise his guard.
The Finish
Rocky went down. Then, because he is Rocky Balboa, he got up at the count of eight, grinning through a swollen eye, and waved Ippo forward. The crowd roared. Ippo, who had only ever wanted to know what it means to be strong, felt tears in his eyes and stepped back in.
They fought on through rounds eight and nine like two men in a dream. Rocky landed a hook that dropped Ippo to one knee. Ippo rose and answered with another Dempsey Roll. Rocky went down again in round ten, and again rose. In round eleven his corner looked at his legs, at his eye, and threw in the towel, while Rocky shouted that he could go on.
Afterwards, sitting on the ring apron with ice on their faces, Rocky asked Ippo how he learned to hit like that. Ippo told him about his coach, his fishing shop and his mother. Rocky told him about a pet shop and a girl called Adrian. They stayed until the gym closed.
The verdict
Ippo Makunouchi wins
Rocky’s heart keeps the fight alive for eleven rounds, but Ippo is faster, hits harder for his size, and the Dempsey Roll gives him a finishing weapon Rocky has never seen.
- Punching powerIppo hits with knockout power rare even at heavier weights.
- The Dempsey RollA combination that arrives from unpredictable angles with full body weight.
- DefenceIppo’s peek-a-boo guard and weaving blunt Rocky’s heavy hooks.
How the rematch could go differently: If Rocky smothered Ippo on the inside from the first bell and denied him room to start the Roll, his chin and stamina could carry him to a decision.
Who do you think wins?
Who would win in a fight between Ippo Makunouchi and Rocky Balboa?
Ippo Makunouchi wins. Rocky’s heart keeps the fight alive for eleven rounds, but Ippo is faster, hits harder for his size, and the Dempsey Roll gives him a finishing weapon Rocky has never seen.