Boxing is littered with tales of once great boxers whose have struggled to deal with the trappings of fame and are unable to deal with life outside the ring.

Drinks, drugs, sex scandals and legal difficulties are just some of the issues that boxers have faced, and the case of Tommy “The Gun” Morrison is a case in point.

The man who once worked with Sylvester Stallone on Rocky V and won the WBO heavyweight title was dead by the age of 44, having contracted HIV and then AIDS. By then he had a history of alcohol abuse, and had served time in prison for DUI, drugs and firearm offences.

Early Career

Morrison began boxing at the age of ten in Oklahoma where he was raised, lying about his age and using fake IDs to fight men much older than him. Possessed of explosive power as a heavyweight, he may have fought in over 200 bouts in his amateur career which culminated at the US Olympic Trials in 1988. He lost on a split decision to Ray Mercer he went on to claim heavyweight gold in Seoul.

Turning Professional and Rocky

Morrison turned pro later that year. He made an explosive start to his professional career, winning his first 28 bouts, 23 of them via knock-outs.

In 1990, Stallone’s brother Frank watched one of his fights, knowing that Sylvester was looking for someone to play the character of “Tommy Gun” in the fifth film of the franchise, thought that Morrison would be a good fit for the role.

He had never acted before.

Defeat and then title success

Morrison suffered his first defeat as a professional when he met Mercer again for the vacant WBO title in 1991 in Atlantic City, Mercer winning by fifth round knockout.

However, the man nicknamed “The Duke” – based on an unsubstantiated claim he was related to the Hollywood actor John Wayne – recovered and won his next eight fights, all of them by knockout.

That earned him a second title shot, this time for the WBO belt, against an ageing George Foreman. For once Morrison boxed smartly; he made sure he kept his chin out of range of Foreman’s best punches, and won on points by unanimous decision.

Mixed Fortunes

Morrison lost his second title defence, knocked out in the first round by the unheralded Michael Bentt.

However, he then had three more fights and then fought Donovan Razor Ruddock for the WBC title. Ruddock put him down in the first round, but Morrison recovered, and eventually stopped the Canadian.

When he fought Lennox Lewis the next year, Morrison was knocked out in the sixth round.

Legal problems

Morrison had a string of legal problems, facing charges ranging from DUI, drugs and carrying illegal firearms. He pled guilty to punching a University of Iowa student whose only crime was to look at him in a “funny way”, and would append time in jail for intoxication drugs and weapons’ possession.

Chaotic Personal Life

Outside of the ring Morrison had a chaotic personal life, characterised by heavy drinking, numerous brushes with the law. By the age of 19, he had fathered two children. At one stage he was married to two women at the same time and was known as a womanizer. His philandering was to have devastating personal consequences.

HIV Diagnosis

In 1996, Morrison was scheduled to fight Arthur Weathers when the Nevada Athletic Boxing Commission announced that he had tested positive for HIV.

There had been suspicions for some time. He had avoided giving blood samples for months, claiming that he was scared of needles.

He immediately retired, only to mount a comeback of sorts, when West Virginia granted him a licence after he tested negative for the virus. He had two more fights and then hung up his gloves for good.

His final record was 52 fights, one draw and 48 wins, 42 of those by knock-out.

Final Years

Post retirement he toured the USA with Magic Johnson promoting HIV awareness. He took his medication and appeared to be in remission for a while.

However, after meeting the woman who would later go on to become his third wife, he stopped taking his medication and convinced himself not only that he no longer had HIV, but that he had never had it in the first place.

In August 2013, his mother announced that her son had developed full-blown AIDS. Within a month he had died at a medical facility in Omaha, Nebraska, the cause of death multiple organ failure brought on by AIDS complications. He was only 44 years old.