Retired boxer Mike Tyson and actor Sylvester “Sly” Stallone better known in the boxing world as “Rocky” were both recently inducted into the International Boxer Hall of Fame. While one was a real fighter and one only portrayed one, both men made great strides in their career through boxing.

     Tyson, the once undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and record holder of being the youngest boxer to win the WBC, WBA and IBF world heavyweight titles, is definitely considered to be one of the great boxers of all time. From winning his first 19 professional bouts, 12 of which were in the first round to being the first heavyweight boxer to hold all three titles simultaneously, it goes without saying that ‘Iron Mike’s’ induction was well deserved.  

     Stallone, with one of his most notable characters to date, Rocky Balboa, secured his reputation as an actor and box office winner. Not to mention that he wrote and directed the 4-flim “Rocky” series and five other movies based on the Rocky Balboa character and took this fictional boxer to heights that film characters rarely if at all go. The original “Rocky” alone scored 10 Academy Award nominations, won Best Picture, Best Directing, and Best Film Editing, was inducted into the National Film Registry with the film’s props being housed in the Smithsonian Museum. “Rocky II” grossed an estimated $200 million back in the early 80s. Now with “Rocky III” and “Rocky IV” being just as successful in addition to Stallone’s 2006 Boxing Writers Association of America award for “Lifetime Cinematic Achievement in Boxing”, it goes without saying that his induction was within rights.

Congratulations to both men on their accomplishments!!!