Will

Following his win over Clubber Lang in New York City, Will returns home to Philadelphia. Ivan Drago (Lundgren), an intimidating, huge, Soviet boxer arrives in America to challenge the best American fighters. Apollo Creed, motivated by patriotism and a desire to prove himself after retirement, quickly jumps at the chance to step back into the ring in an exhibition bout against Drago. Despite apprehension from Will, who eventually agrees to help train him, Apollo sets the match between himself and Drago in Las Vegas. With Will in his corner, Apollo flamboyantly makes his way to the ring with a bigger show than when he first fought Will, which includes fireworks, a concert by James Brown, and a patriotic theme, including a crowd implacably hostile to the visiting Soviet boxer. The match turns into a tragedy, however, as Creed is killed in the second round, after Will, implored by Creed, refuses to throw in the towel and stop the match. Will Dixon faces up to Ivan Drago, in grief over not stopping the fight, and incensed by Drago's cold indifference to killing Apollo, "If he dies, he dies", Will decides he must avenge Apollo's death and sets a match with the Russian. The match is set for December 25, in Moscow, but Will's title is not on the line because the boxing commission refuses to sanction the fight. Adrian initially cannot understand why Will would fight, fearing for his life. Will flies to a remote and rustic part of the Soviet Union to train; to help with his training he brings Apollo's former trainer Tony "Duke" Evers and his brother-in-law Paulie. Training runs for several months, with Will using more humble methods like chopping wood, running up snowy embankments, and lifting huge rocks; Drago is using the most modern equipment coupled with regular injections of anabolic steroids. During one of his runs, Will returns to find Adrian waiting for him. With Adrian providing more reason to succeed, Will begins to train even harder.After intense preparation for both fighters, the two men finally meet in the ring. The match set in Moscow, before the Politburo, and is broadcast throughout the globe. The crowd is strongly against Will, booing him fiercely and cheering Drago, as the American crowd cheered Creed and booed Drago in Las Vegas. After a pummeling first round, with the Russian easily winning, Will comes back toward the end of the second and cuts Drago just below his eye. With Drago's confidence shaken by the injury and Will's apparently limitless endurance and resilience, the fight degenerates into a brutal battle of stamina and will across all fifteen rounds. By the end, the Soviet crowd has been won over by Will's determination and endurance, and have begun chanting his name. In the fifteenth and final round, both fighters batter at each other, but Drago's endurance finally runs out, while Will finds his last burst of strength and lands one final signature left hook that finally knocks out the Russian.Following his victory, Will gives an impassioned speech to the crowd, acknowledging their initial and mutual disdain for each other, and how they've come to respect and admire each other during the fight. Saying that the brutal battle between him and Drago in the ring was better than war between their two countries, he brings the crowd, including the Politburo, to its feet in applause, by claiming that "if I can change and you can change, then everybody can change!"