Who is Rocky 's brother ?
He is given the chance at the heavyweight title Talia Shire as Adrian Pennino , Rocky 's love interest ; a shy and quiet pet store clerk who falls in love with Rocky and supports him through his training Burt Young as Paulie Pennino , Adrian 's brother ; a meat - packing plant worker by trade , Paulie permits Rocky to train in the freezer Carl Weathers as Apollo Creed , Rocky 's opponent and the heavyweight champion ( the character was influenced by the outspoken boxing great Muhammad Ali ) Burgess Meredith as Mickey Goldmill , Rocky 's manager and trainer , a former bantamweight fighter from the 1920s and the owner of the local boxing gym Thayer David as George Jergens , the fight promoter who has " promoted fights all over the world " Joe Spinell as Tony Gazzo , loan shark and Rocky 's employer Tony Burton as Tony " Duke " Evers , Apollo Creed 's manager and trainer ( Burton 's role became more prominent in later Rocky films )