Dixon’s record before the fight is 33-0 (30 KO). Also on the DVD, the film’s writer and director Sylvester Stallone wanted to cast a real boxer in the role of Dixon, as he thought it would be easier to teach a boxer how to act than to teach an actor how to box convincingly. 
(Another great shot of PAULIE at an actual TARVER bout! Paulie was there to give the boys some pointers!) In an August 18, 2010 interview with Stallone on The Howard Stern Show, the director indicated that Tarver refused to film his scene after the MGM had been rented out and filled with people already incurring high costs. In order to get the filming done, Stallone gave Tarver a cut of his own salary and points on the back end…
