Oscar De La Hoya has been teasing his return to the ring since last August, and over the weekend, the 48-year-old Hall of Fame fighter finally made his comeback appear one step closer to becoming a reality by announcing an Independence Day weekend date.
“July 3, I’m making my comeback,” De La Hoya said to Fight Club co-founder Snoop Dogg during a Triller press conference Friday.
With his propensity to work up audiences still operating at peak levels, De La Hoya literally dropped the microphone and walked off stage seconds after without shedding more detail into the fistic fireworks he promised.
ESPN’s Marc Raimondi has offered more details into De La Hoya’s return, reporting that the six-division champion has signed a multi-fight deal with Triller, and, per the platform’s owner Ryan Kavanaugh, the Golden Boy will make his return against a notable UFC fighter in Texas, with AT&T Stadium in Dallas being one of the venue possibilities.
One frontrunner for the fight could be Conor McGregor. De La Hoya and McGregor have traded barbs and accepted unofficial challenges from each other over the years, but nothing substantial has ever materialized from the banter.
De La Hoya has been retired from boxing since he suffered a one-sided beating to Manny Pacquiao in 2008. In retirement, he’s been the face of his promotional company.
However in recent months, the Los Angeles born-and-bred boxer and 1992 Olympics gold medalist has expressed his desire to duke it up again.
De La Hoya has joined the long-retired legendary likes of Mike Tyson, Roy Jones Jr., Evander Holyfield and Floyd Mayweather Jr. who have recently engaged or expressed interest in partaking in exhibition matches.
It is not yet clear if De La Hoya will fight in an exhibition match or a professional bout.
In February, De La Hoya was granted a new boxing Federal ID by California.
De La Hoya has previously expressed he could comfortably make weight at 160 pounds, and boxers such as Marcos Maidana have been considered as a viable dance partner.
“I have been training. I seriously feel incredible. I feel amazing. With me, I always fought the very best, and why not?” De La Hoya said last October. “None of this ducking fighters like the way fighters duck everyone today. They make it impossible because they price themselves out. It’s a huge problem … George Foreman did it, and I think I can do it as well … I feel like a million, million bucks. It's crazy.”
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, via email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com or on www.ManoukAkopyan.com