It is 1975; boxing is in its heyday, and the heavyweight champion of the world is a global superstar of epic proportions. Apollo Creed holds a press conference to announce that he is going to hold a title bout in Philadelphia during the Bicentennial celebrations for the United States. There is excitement; everyone anticipates a close, exciting bout.
Five weeks before the fight is scheduled to take place, Creed and his people learn that his opponent has a hand injury and will not be able to fight. Second, third and fourth choice opponents are unavailable and every potential replacement is either fighting elsewhere or unable to make the bout on the scheduled date. Creed turns the situation to his advantage by inviting local boxer Rocky Balboa to fight him for the heavyweight championship of the world. Rocky is a southpaw, a left-hander from the south side of Philadelphia. He is nicknamed the Italian Stallion.
When promoter Miles Jergens meets with Rocky, the local fighter assumes he is looking for potential sparring partners for Creed before the fight. When he learns that he is not the sparring partner but the opponent he is initially reluctant to fight. A pay-out of one hundred and fifty thousand dollars changes his mind, but he has no team behind him. His fight preparation consists of punching meat carcasses at the abattoir Several weeks later he accepts an offer of help from the owner of a boxing gym, Mighty Mick Goldmill. Goldmill was a fighter himself in his youth and he is a renowned trainer. Rocky has always frustrated him because he has never fully committed to training and Mick thinks he is wasting his talent and his potential.
Rocky's personal life is complicated. He has just met Adrienne Pennino and their relationship blossoms, but Adrienne's brother Paulie doesn't like Rocky. He is jealous of his talent and of the opportunity he is about to experience. Rocky placates him by suggesting that he advertises Paulie's meat packing business on his clothing before the fight.
Rocky doesn't expect to win. His only goal is to go the full distance with Creed. Nobody has ever done that before. He knows that everyone views him as a joke contender and he wants to prove that he is worthy of the fight. The fight is held on New Year's Day. Creed dresses as Uncle Sam to enter the arena and is arrogant and cocky. He does not take Rocky seriously from the first punch, and this over-confidence allows Rocky to knock him down in Round One. Creed has never been knocked down before and does not take kindly to it from an upstart local. He takes him more seriously but never seriously enough. The fight goes the distance and both men receive injuries; Rocky has a detached retina, and Apollo has a broken rib. It is a match of skill over guts; Creed is the more artful boxer but Rocky seems to have an unlimited capacity for taking punches and he will not fall. The final bell rings and both boxers agree that there will never be a rematch between them.
The crowd erupts at the end of the fight and the assorted pundits and television commentators are beside themselves. Rocky only wants to see Adrienne who manages to come down to the ring when Paulie diverts the attention of the ringside security. Jergen declares Creed the winner. It is a split decision but in boxing, the champion always prevails in the case of an undecided judging panel. Rocky does not care about the loss. He has taken Creed further than anyone else has ever managed to, and he and Adrian finally tell each other that they are in love.
