Former heavyweight boxer and US Marine, Chuck Wepner, had his 15 minutes of fame back in 1975.  Actually, to put it more accurate, it wasn’t 15 minutes, it was 15 rounds of fame.

1975 was the year that Wepner, also known as the Bayonne Brawler and Bayonne Bleeder,  fought heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali and went 15 rounds with the champion.  Despite cuts above both eyes and a broken nose, Wepner was able to withstand Ali’s onslaught until 19 seconds left in the 15th round at which time Wepner finally hit the mat.

Sylvester Stallone modeled his character, Rocky Balboa, of the movie “Rocky” after Wepner and his bout with Ali.  The movie was very successful and sequels to “Rocky” were later produced.

Ali called his bout with Wepner, one of the toughest fights in his career!

Chuck Wepner