Insider Notebook: Oscar is No Manny, Hopkins-Williams

[BIGPOPPAPUMP]

By Robert Morales - Oscar De La Hoya's popularity as a fighter is indisputable. He set every pay-per-view record imaginable, and it all started with the terrific work done by promoter Bob Arum and his Top Rank Inc. A day after De La Hoya announced his retirement, Arum on Wednesday intimated that much of what transpired early on in De La Hoya's career was a set-up job that worked incredibly well.

"None of it came by accident," said Arum, who promoted De La Hoya for roughly two-thirds of his 17-year career. "It was all a lot of hard work by a lot of people. A lot of innovative stuff.

"The women that suddenly appeared, going crazy for Oscar, that wasn't an accident. That was something we took out of the Frank Sinatra book. You stir it up and then the fire starts and then you can step back and let it be natural. But it doesn't start naturally. [details]

[FLY TY]

well hopkins definitely ain't coming down to 160.....if anything it should be at a catchweight of 170, or williams should be willing to move up to fight hopkins.....my top 2 fighters, so i don't wanna see it anyways.....

we'll never see mosley-williams.

[Queen_Leia]

B-Hop cannot make 160 anymore...even if he cut off his leg. Fight ain't happening plus B-Hop would be call a hypocrite for fighting Williams when Dawson is right there waiting.

[ßringer]

Hopkins can't even make 160 anymore.

It's just a ploy by Paul, so that when Hopkins turns down the offer, Paul's fans can claim another "duck".

If Williams was serious about fighting Hopkins he'd go to a catchweight of 170, just 2lbs north of 168 : The division Paul said he'd fight Calzaghe at.

[FLY TY]

Hopkins can't even make 160 anymore.

It's just a ploy by Paul, so that when Hopkins turns down the offer, Paul's fans can claim another "duck".

If Williams was serious about fighting Hopkins he'd go to a catchweight of 170, just 2lbs north of 168 : The division Paul said he'd fight Calzaghe at.

exactly what i say....i'm a williams fan, but this is obviously a "ploy" right here....hopkins at age 44, ain't makin' 160.

[J.B.moneY.]

if paul willims wants to make a name for himself....he needs to fight the top middleweights

[ßringer]

exactly what i say....i'm a williams fan, but this is obviously a "ploy" right here....hopkins at age 44, ain't makin' 160.

I'm glad you agree.

No disrespect to Paul either, he impressed me with his performance against Wright.

But Hopkins ain't making 160 anymore, and he himself is doubtful he'll ever fight again.

So it's a win/win for Paul, because he can claim another duck, and grab more headlines and attention by doing so.

[Mr. Philadel]

Arum said that the only regret he had for the way he engineered De La Hoya's career was that he let De La Hoya dictate some of what went on with the selection of his opponents. For example, Arum said De La Hoya absolutely "refused" to fight a southpaw on the way up the ladder.
Well, De La Hoya did beat the left-handed Jimmi Bredahl in his 12th fight in March 1994 to win his first world title, but Bredahl was no real threat.
Then De La Hoya took on Pernell Whitaker four years later - in April 1997 - and won a unanimous decision.
“The only one he ever fought was Whitaker and he was a dead man," Arum said. "And he nearly beat Oscar. That is why I was so convinced that (Manny) Pacquiao would beat him and beat him badly and knock him out. I really believed that. It wasn't just promoter's talk; I wasn't going to embarrass myself.
"I knew he couldn't fight southpaws and as a consequence, he got the s**t kicked out of him."

now I see why he never fought Winky

As for Williams, Goossen said he asked De La Hoya after Williams beat Wright if he would like to put together a fight between Williams and Bernard Hopkins

Goossen said he told De La Hoya that Hopkins would have to get down into the 160s

at 168 it could happen but P-Dub might need to make some more noise..... Williams at 168 would be interesting

[MANGLER]

Bhop-Pwill ain't happenin.

[Ace Boogie]

Im not a de la hoya fan by no strech but it sounds to me like bobby arum is trying to throw some heavy ass stones at the golden boy's statue, true oscar is no ray lenoard but in 20 years everyone is gonna remeber the golden boy