Rocky discovers his locker has been given away

Rocky (1976) captures one of the most overlooked moments in Rocky Balboa's journey when he returns to Mickey's boxing gym and discovers his longtime locker has been given to another fighter. To Mickey, Rocky is a talented boxer who has wasted his potential and is running out of chances. But the rejection makes his eventual opportunity to face heavyweight champion Apollo Creed even more meaningful. Before Rocky became an icon, he was a fighter struggling to earn even the smallest amount of respect. Was Rocky the greatest underdog story ever told in a sports movie?