Boxer and ‘Rocky V’ Co-Star Tommy Morrison Has Died At Age 44 [VIDEO]

Boxing fans will never forget when Tommy Morrison stepped into the ring and beat George Foreman to become heavyweight champion. And now, sadly, Tommy's longtime promoter and close friend, Tony Holden, has confirmed that "the Duke" had died at the age of 44.

What strikes at the core of Tommy's climb to the top of his craft was when he tested positive for HIV just three years after becoming the champ. According to USA Today;

The last 20 years of the brash boxer's life would be defined by extensive legal troubles, erratic behavior and mounting health problems. Morrison would later claim that he never tested positive for the virus that causes AIDs, even as he was hospitalized during the last days of his life.

Morrison was a prodigious puncher whose bid to fight in the 1988 Seoul Olympics ended at the hands of Ray Mercer, who later dealt him his first professional loss. Along the way, Morrison became such a recognizable face that he was cast in Rocky V alongside Sylvester Stallone.

Morrison died Sunday night at a Nebraska hospital.
Here is the interview Tommy did with Larry King back in 1996.