Oscar Promises Verbal Fight Week Beatdown of Canelo
May 1, 2024 • 11:10 AM ET
LAS VEGAS – In a recent interview, Golden Boy Promotions founder Oscar De La Hoya said Canelo Alvarez “didn’t want to deal with me” in negotiations because “he doesn’t like the attention taken away from him.”
De La Hoya, who promoted Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 KOs) from 2010 until their contractual split following victories in four weight classes, said he’s anticipating something beyond the thrill of watching the De La Hoya-promoted Jaime Munguia upset Alvarez in their Saturday night bout for the undisputed super-middleweight title.
“I’m going to speak the truth. When I’m on the podium, I’m not going to hold back,” De La Hoya said on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Hour. “I’m going to wait until fight week and I’m going to go hard. I’m going to talk s*** like there’s no tomorrow. You know how much s*** he’s talked on me? I got all kinds of stuff.”
Told of De La Hoya’s plans at Tuesday’s grand arrivals at the MGM Grand lobby, Alvarez didn’t flinch.
“I don’t really care. I’m so happy. I don’t really care about Oscar,” Alvarez said. “He has s*** in his head. I don’t give a s*** what he says.”
De La Hoya reminded that he’s won six division titles on 10 occasions, an advantage over his former fighter who’s seeking a sensational victory following four bouts without a knockout.
“The fact Canelo only had two choices – Munguia or unbeaten super-middleweight champion David Benavidez – so he probably thought, ‘OK, s***, they cornered me.’ Let me pick Munguia,” De La Hoya said.
“You take a look at Canelo, the decline has been happening slowly. You can see the wear and tear. So this could be De La Hoya-Chavez all over again. It happens in the sport all the time. I’m going to speak the truth.”
Lance Pugmire has been a full-time boxing writer for nearly 20 years, serving now as BoxingScene’s U.S. Senior Writer and assistant producer for ProBoxTV’s “BoxingScene Today.” Pugmire capped a near 20-year career at the Los Angeles Times (sports investigations, NHL/MLB beat work, law enforcement/courts and boxing/UFC) to join The Athletic, and then USA Today. Pugmire’s stint at The Times started with the first Israel Vazquez-Rafael Marquez fight and the Oscar De La Hoya-Floyd Mayweather Jnr then-record pay-per-view, leading through a slew of ringside assignments at major bouts, including Mayweather-Pacquiao, Mayweather-Canelo and the Canelo-Golovkin trilogy. Lance’s appreciation for boxing is rooted in his admiration and appreciation for the fighters, gladiators who have proven to be the most forthcoming and candid of all the athletes he has interviewed over a career dating to 1990. Lance was honored to be named the 2022 winner of the Boxing Writers Association of America Nat Fleischer Award for career excellence and he’s collected many BWAA writing awards in categories ranging from breaking news to deep-dive long features.
