Drago is a murderer

Instead of throwing in the towel, Apollo's team shouldve just jumped into the friggin ring and physically hauled Apollo away from Drago, rather than just standing there like retards watching their friend get slowly pummelled to death before their very eyes. Seriously, it's so dumb. It's like yeah, just about 3 or 4 dudes jump into the the ring and separate them, I doubt Drago can beat up that many at once, including Rocky himself.

And yes, that incident would have constituted murder because Drago threw the ref out the way who tried to stop it and continued to punch a defenceless Apollo, which means it stopped being a boxing match and started being a personal vendetta to kill him thus murder.

How many a$$holes we got on this ship, anyhow?!

Nowadays it likely would have been stopped, but back in the day it wasn't uncommon for a boxer to get killed in the ring, in the 30s Max Baer killed a guy in the ring, and that wasn't the only case but IDK how that worked during the time this film was made though in other words I'm not sure if killing guys in the ring during the 80s was an acceptable thing or not.
However the Clubber/Paulie scene in the 3rd movie does make me wonder why he wasn't charged or something wasn't said about it.

"I'd rather lose for what I am than win for what I ain't"

Kacey Musgraves "Pageant Material"

ALL the Rocky fights would have been stopped long before a tenth of the punches we see were thrown.

Of all the Rocky films this is the most absurd. The ref would have stopped the fight, especially as this was an exhibition bout the ref would've stepped in much earlier. Stallone really screwed up on this one. It would've been much more fitting at Apollo been knocked senseless and put in the hospital. Killing him was a tragic waste. They really did turn it into a popcorn 80s anti-Soviet Piece. And believe me, the USSR deserved to go down like it did. But this film was just absurd.

Exactly. As long as they are both playing under the sport's rules then it wasn't a premeditated murder.

In real life legal action would've been taken against Drago. He shoves the ref out of the way when it's pretty obvious that the ref was coming in to stop the fight. Of course boxers can be killed in the ring but if the ref was coming in to stop the fight all punches after that would be considered assault. Also Drago would've been disqualified for what he did to the ref.

Rocky IV is a highly entertaining film but story wise it's the most unrealistic of the Rockys in more ways than one. Sure you had to suspend some disbelief with the fighting scenes in Rockys I-III but the overall storylines were still plausible about what a boxer can go through. There isn't much that's plausible regarding Rocky IV's story. But Stallone was in full action hero mode by this point so I don't think he really cared.

Of course you're correct, but let's face it, every Rocky movie featured fights that would have been stopped with a tenth of the haymakers landed.

that's exactly what it should have been. on top of that it wasn't a real fight it was supposed to be an exhibition.

Havent seen it in decades
he tossed the ref out the way?

I was about to reply the ref should be charged but not if he was tossed out the way

I agree
isn't it at best assault and battery followed by involuntary manslaughter?

and at worst - murder
I can see prosecutors saying "no thats not assualt , he knew his fists were killer weapons and used them - murder"