What is the name of the first boxer Rocky fights in the original film?

The first boxer Rocky fights in the original film is Spider Rico.

Rocky (1976) opens with Rocky Balboa competing in a low-paying bout at the Cambria Fight Club, a rough venue nicknamed “The Bucket of Blood.” His opponent is Spider Rico, played by real-life Argentine heavyweight Pedro Lovell. Rico headbutts Rocky during the fight, opening a cut above his eye, but Rocky responds with a furious barrage and knocks him out.

This opening match establishes Rocky as a talented but declining club fighter before the much bigger Apollo Creed opportunity changes his life. A common mix-up is to name Apollo Creed, Ivan Drago, or Tommy Gunn: all are important opponents in the wider series, but none is Rocky’s first on-screen opponent. Spider Rico later returns in Rocky Balboa (2006), where he is shown as an old friend who eats at Rocky’s restaurant and works in its kitchen. The character therefore connects the first film’s humble beginning with Rocky’s later life.