How was Ivan Drago born? Dolph Lundgren on the hardest training of his life and a role that required "serious muscle"

When you say Ivan Drago, fans see an indestructible machine. In a recent interview with T3 magazine, Dolph Lundgren looked back at what really went into the making of this cinematic legend. And it wasn't a cakewalk - preparing for his role in the cult film Rocky IV was, in his words, the toughest physical test of his life.

To convincingly portray the Soviet champion, Lundgren had to build his character literally from scratch. As he revealed to T3, he weighed much less before filming and his task was clear: to gain pure muscle mass and look monstrous.

"I had to build quite a bit of muscle. I've never trained harder in my life," Lundgren confided in an interview.

The training schedule was brutal. Lundgren trained six days a week, often in two phases. Mornings were heavy weights and bodybuilding for volume, and afternoons were boxing for technique and endurance. All overseen by Sylvester Stallone himself.

"Sly was tough on me," Lundgren recalls of working with the Hollywood legend.

But Stallone didn't just stick to conducting. He attended every training session himself and toiled alongside his cinematic rival. Together they spent hours in the gym and then in the ring. It was this uncompromising hard work and Stallone's perfectionism that created the unforgettable on-screen chemistry and physical dominance that made the film a classic of the genre.