Muhammad Ali vs. Chuck Wepner sufficiently inspiring for Sylvester Stallone to base the character of Rocky on Wepner, and of Apollo Creed on Ali. Muhammad Ali vs. Chuck Wepner Muhammad Ali and Chuck Wepner fought each other in a boxing match on March 24, 1975 at the Richfield Coliseum in Richfield Township, Summit County, Ohio. This was Ali's first boxing bout after The Rumble in the Jungle. The fight was billed as "Give the White Guy a Break". Ali won the fight after he knocked out Wepner in the fifteenth round.The fight is notable for being among the four fights in which Ali was officially
Muhammad Ali corner, Ali retreated to the ropes and invited Foreman to hit him while covering up, clinching and counter-punching, all while verbally taunting Foreman. The move, which would later become known as the "Rope-a-dope", so violated conventional boxing wisdom—letting one of the hardest hitters in boxing strike at will—that at ringside writer George Plimpton thought the fight had to be fixed. Foreman, increasingly angered, threw punches that were deflected and did not land squarely. Midway through the fight, as Foreman began tiring, Ali countered more frequently and effectively with punches and flurries, which electrified the pro-Ali crowd. In the eighth round,