Now that Rocky was the title holder the saga needed to take a twist. After defending his title 10 times, and facing Thunderlips, Rocky fought his toughest battle yet. It wasn't the battle against Clubber but it was the battle against himself. Rocky had found out that Mick had been protecting him because of the beatings he took from Apollo. Rocky then fought Clubber on a day where he lost his best friend and father figure Micky.

Apollo, because of his negative feelings for Clubber, offered to help Rocky train for a rematch with Clubber. They trained old and hard but it took Adrian to put Rocky over the top. Adrian revealed her hidden strenth and determination taking Rocky to task over feeling sorry for himself.

Rocky trounced Clubber in the rematch to become champion again. It was fun to see Rocky thrashing Clubber but almost anti-climatic because Rocky was never really losing in the fight itself.

At the end of the movie we see Rocky repaying the favor to Apollo, a sparring session. This would lead us into Rocky's toughest opponent ever, Drago.