Sylvester Stallone breaks silence on Rocky co-star Hulk Hogan's death

Sylvester Stallone has paid a heartbreaking tribute to Hulk Hogan, who died this week.The WWE wrestler died at the age of 71 following a reported cardiac arrestand tributes have since flooded in for the sportsman.

Rocky star Sylvester - who appeared alongside the wrestler in 1982 on the set of Rocky III and he said he knew he was going to be famous. Sylvester said there was a glow about him on set.

He also posted on Instagram, writing: "I had the pleasure of meeting this brilliant personality and showman when he was 26 years old. He was absolutely wonderful and his amazing skill made Rocky three incredibly special. My heart breaks. I think that he’s gone."

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Read more updates following Hulk Hogan's death by following our live blog.

Sylvester recalled how 315 pound Hulk would pick him up and drop him on the ground but he had a special way of dropping him down to ensure he was never hurt. He described the punches as incredibly accurate and precise.

Branding the wrestling star a "force to be reckoned with", he said: "This fella was very... he was just at the beginning of his career, he hadn't quite come into his own yet so we got him at a point where he was so enthusiastic and I remember he was immense, he was probably about 315lbs (22st 5lbs) but very smart. He had this deep, calming voice.

"And he was willing to do anything that would make the show better. At first no one wanted him because they said he was too big – that was the whole point it's like David and Goliath, the bigger the better. And he showed up in magnificent shape."

He told TMZ: "The thing was, we started to roll around and he would literally pick me up and drop me to the ground. I figured I'm gonna be literally pulp by the time I land and yet he would always break the fall and do things you wouldn't see like a magician."

Sylvester went on to say how smart Hulk was. He shared: "He was very smart. A lot of people judge a book by its cover - I know what that feels like. They did the same with him. He was very smart, very entrepreneurial, very musical.

"He just was in a lot of pain. I know he had so many injuries. He said 10 plus and yet he never complained. He just tried to persevere and be as pleasant as possible. I miss him terribly. He's irreplaceable. It's been a rough week between him and Ozzy Osbourne. We've lost some monumental human beings."

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