Oscar De La Hoya is one of the most recognizable names when it comes to the boxing world. La Hoya retired from boxing but stayed in the fight game by taking up a new career as a promoter. However, his love for the sport has pushed him to make the decision to come out of retirement and resume his professional boxing career at the age of 47.
Oscar De La Hoya had a phenomenal career which made him one of the best boxers in his time. Starting his career with a bang, the boxer exploded on to the stage with a gold medal in the Barcelona Olympics in 1992.
This victory was just the beginning as he turned pro and started his climb up the ranks. By 1994, the Golden Boy was fighting for the WBO junior lightweight title, which he claimed. This feat was accomplished only in his 12th professional bout.
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After this title, De La Hoya would then move on to claim world titles in six different weight classes. His boxing chops were only one part of his appeal. He was very marketable and developed a global fan base. His last professional fight was against Manny Pacquaio in 2008. After decided to quit in the eighth round of their fight, he announced his retirement at the age of 36. He finished with a record of 39 wins, 30 by KO and just 6 losses.
The fact that he has decided to make a comeback after nearly 12 years come as a surprise to many.
According to De La Hoya, he has never been in better condition. He says that his jabs are faster now at 47. The one thing that he really needs to test is his conditioning. De La Hoya says that he started getting back into shape a few months ago.
The reason for De la Hoya’s return is mainly because of what he sees in the latest group of fighters. He says the current group of fighters are not like the fighters from a decade or two ago. De la Hoya says that although he is older, he knows how to train harder and to train smarter.
Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson have also announced this year that they are coming out of retirement to fight exhibition boxing matches. De La Hoya does not want any exhibition fights, he wants a real fight. The plan is to compete between 154-160 pounds and to fight any top guy out there. It is quite possible that he could fight before the end of 2020 or early 2021.
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