Oscar De La Hoya retired from boxing in 2008 after losing to Manny Pacquiao, but it was announced this week that he will officially return to the ring for an exhibition match against MMA legend Vitor Belfort on Sept. 11. While that bout should bring in plenty of money, De La Hoya is not planning to stop there.
During DAZN’s coverage of the Jaime Mungui-Kamil Szeremeta fight on Saturday night, De La Hoya said he is aiming to make “the biggest comeback in boxing history.” The 48-year-old wants to fight two times before turning his focus toward Floyd Mayweather Jr.
“I want to get two of these fights down under my belt, and get the timing ready and everything, and then my third one, I want to call out Floyd Mayweather,” De La Hoya said, via DAZN’s Liam Happe.
Chris Mannix, who conducted the interview with De La Hoya, mentioned that Mayweather only has interest in exhibitions at this point, as he likely wants to protect his perfect 50-0 record. However, De La Hoya thinks Floyd can be convinced.
“I think Floyd after that exhibition he did with with Logan (Paul), I think Floyd has — I think he’s feeling like he has to prove something once again inside the boxing ring,” De La Hoya said.
De La Hoya is probably just fantasizing, once again. If you remember, he issued a different kind of challenge to Mayweather years ago, and Floyd ignored that as expected.
Mayweather, who beat De La Hoya in 2007, always listens when it comes to making a ton of money. But that doesn’t mean he’ll be open to a rematch against De La Hoya, especially if “The Golden Boy” wants a real fight and not an exhibition.
