Oleksandr Usyk recently posted a heart-warming training montage in the style of Rocky III, showing that he is now helping to coach former rival Anthony Joshua, and while the clip may have been a nod to one of boxing’s greatest works of fiction, this particular remake is a touching true story.
Fight fans were buzzing after boxing’s unified heavyweight champion, Oleksandr Usyk shared a video of him racing along the beach with former champ Joshua, and not least because there’s an element of life imitating art here. In Rocky III, “The Italian Stallion,” famously played by Sylvester Stallone, becomes down on his luck after a crushing defeat at the hands of Clubber Lang (played by Mr T), and is later trained by his former rival Apollo Creed (played by Carl Weathers). In the movie, Creed sees that Rocky is in need of both physical and emotional support, with the resulting training montage showing Rocky and Apollo sprinting in the sand as Balboa comes back stronger and whoops Clubber Lang in their rematch.
Why Fans Are Comparing Usyk and Joshua to Rocky and Apollo
When Rocky lost his title to Clubber Lang in the movie, he was also forced to deal with the loss of his longtime trainer, Mickey Goldmill (Burgess Meredith). More seriously, in real life, Anthony Joshua has suffered both professional and personal loss in recent times.
The British boxer is a two-time unified champion who was able to avenge his first title loss and get it back from Andy Ruiz Jr in short order, but the same couldn’t be said when he ran up against Usyk, who took the belt from AJ in 2021 and then beat him again the following year. After that second unsuccessful bout, Joshua took the champions’ belts and dropped them outside the ropes. He later apologized for his uncharacteristic behavior.
The Emotional Meaning Behind Usyk’s Rocky III Tribute
In late 2025, shortly after beating Jake Paul, Joshua was involved in a fatal car accident that killed his personal trainer, Latif Ayodele, and strength coach, Sina Ghami, The driver, Adeniyi Mobolaji Kayode, is awaiting trial on charges of dangerous driving, and understandably, Joshua has not boxed since. He is expected to make his return to the ring against Kristian Prenga on July 25, but with stinging professional losses, including a knockout from Daniel Dubois in 2024 to contend with, the Brit’s biggest rival, Oleksandr Usyk, has now become a trusted friend. In March, Joshua visited the champion in Ukraine and now it seems like this highly positive bromance is going from strength to strength.
“This isn’t a movie remake,” commented Usyk alongside the updated Rocky III training montage. “It’s a new story being created right now.” Of course, with Usyk readying for Rico Verhoeven on May 29, this newfound camaraderie, echoing Rocky and Apollo’s relationship, could be a mutually beneficial affair. But it has to be said, we were hoping they’d go the whole way and reenact remake of Stallone’s and Carl Weather’s iconic hug!
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