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A lot of people talk about De La Hoya’s star power and always seem to credit the Gold Medal he won for his mother for his popularity and economic clout. Although the Gold Medal was a powerful springboard to start from it was actually Oscar’s willingness to make the big fights happen that enabled him to become one of the biggest non-heavyweight attractions in the history of the sport.
Just look at his career, even though Oscar’s Olympic success enabled him to earn rare television dates on a number of different networks which included USA, CBS, ESPN, and HBO he didn’t become an economic powerhouse until after he almost successively engaged in one super-fight after another.
In fact in March of 1994, De La Hoya fought Jimmy Bredahl for the WBO-130 pound title and didn’t even draw a sell out crowd to the Grand Olympic auditorium in his hometown of Los Angeles. Actually it wasn’t until after he challenged IBF Lightweight champ Rafael Ruelas in May of 1995 that he became a bonafide boxing superstar and began to command million dollar paydays.
The bout that made Oscar a household name and firmly established his credentials as the sports most lucrative fighter below the Heavyweight division was his fight with Julio Cesar Chavez. After earning that career high payday Oscar didn’t sit on his behind and request that HBO and Arum set him up a couple of designated knock out victims to protect his status as the sport’s cash cow. [details]
Just look at his career, even though Oscar’s Olympic success enabled him to earn rare television dates on a number of different networks which included USA, CBS, ESPN, and HBO he didn’t become an economic powerhouse until after he almost successively engaged in one super-fight after another.
In fact in March of 1994, De La Hoya fought Jimmy Bredahl for the WBO-130 pound title and didn’t even draw a sell out crowd to the Grand Olympic auditorium in his hometown of Los Angeles. Actually it wasn’t until after he challenged IBF Lightweight champ Rafael Ruelas in May of 1995 that he became a bonafide boxing superstar and began to command million dollar paydays.
The bout that made Oscar a household name and firmly established his credentials as the sports most lucrative fighter below the Heavyweight division was his fight with Julio Cesar Chavez. After earning that career high payday Oscar didn’t sit on his behind and request that HBO and Arum set him up a couple of designated knock out victims to protect his status as the sport’s cash cow. [details]