It's OFFICIAL...& it's SAD...Dude's Voice is QUIVERING from the Outset...It's on ESPNNews Right Now...He Says he CAN'T Do it Anymore & it's Not Fair to his Family or Fans to Continue Fighting... GREAT Career, DeLa... REED:bears:
He Got MOST Emotional when Thanking his Father...Bittersweet Day...Obviously, it's TIME for DeLa to Hang 'em Up, but there's Now a HUGE VOID @ the Top of Boxing's MAINSTREAM List... R.I.P. (RETIRE In Peace) DeLa.... REED:hammert:
Oscar stopped wanting to be a fighter a long time ago, I think this is the right decision for him. Oscar certainly helped keep boxing at the forefront for a long time.
yup. I got all I could out of him, winning thousands of dollars over the years betting against him. now he won't be favored against anyone decent so he can go ahead and disappear. he was great for the business of boxing but he was rarely in exciting fights against his most compelling opponents and he didn't have the career of a truly great fighter.
Hopefully this a permanent retirement. With boxers it can be really difficult to congratulate guys on great careers and so forth when you figure they'll be back as soon as their bank account dips a little.
He had a great career and was matched very advantageously against his opponents. He didn't have the best success after Junior Welter, but he did pretty good in taking titles from Junior Lightweight up to Middleweight (although it was a cheese belt and not the real champ). I actually thought he moved too quickly from Junior Welter to Welter and his power didn't make the jump...similar to Ricky Hatton. He still had that left hook, and he was the true crossover-into-mainstream superstar for his generation. Roy was more talented, but Oscar was the media darling.
That's what'll Keep Dela FROM Returning...It's NOT like he's Gonna Go Broke, he's Only Gonna ADD to his Fortune via Golden Boy Promotions... It'd B REALLY Cool if DeLa Found, Built & Marketed Boxing's NEXT Mainstream Star, from SCRATCH... REED:mj:
He lost his fire since the mosley loss (1st) But overall, I always sat to watch his fights. good career, Oscar, and great wealth.
that would be cool since it seems the sport will go in whatever direction his promotional monopoly takes it. too bad gbp has yet to show any ability to build a guy from scratch
True about the money. However other times it's the hunger to compete or whatever. I guess i'm just tired of false retirement announcements. At lease there was no stupid "farewell fight".
What's WRONG w/a "Farewell Fight", Noble???...Sure it's CHEESY, but it SERVES a Purpose...REED Probably Shouldn't Admit this, but he was Actually HOPING for a DeLa "Farewell Fight" vs. Chavez Jr.::..Millions of Screaming Girls (Who Probably have KIDS by Now) were Probably Hoping for 1 as Well... If U're GOOD Enough to Go Out w/a WIN, then REED Thinks U Should...On that Note, it'd B VERY Nice if Roy RETIRED...He Got the "W", in Pensacola No Less...It WON'T Get Any BETTER than that for him, if he Continues to Fight... REED:hammert:
After the Pac beating, this was inevitable. Whilst 'Golden Boy promotions' and some irritating late matchups took a lot of the lustre from his career IMHO, you have to give props to one of the very few fighters of recent times who really did transend the sport of boxing and into mainstream consciousness. MTF
Because the guy has made enough money milking the public with meaningless fights in recent years. Some on PPV no less. Do it for charity or something. If he was going to have a farewell fight in East LA and have it on free (network) TV i suppose it wouldn't bug me quite as much. Another thing that often happens is fighters re-thinking their retirement because they "felt good" (completing forgetting the guy they were against was there just for that purpose alone)
De La Hoya is one fighter I don't see coming back. He just has too much going for him outside the ring for it to make sense at this point in his life.
I heard the news watching the football game. Not surprised after the Pac performance (painful to watch) and thought about making this exact thread. Happy to see you guys (mostly) are giving Dela the praise he deserves on what was an excellent career. I don't see Oscar coming back he thought about this for a long time. I didnt see the press conference but the look on his face after the Manny fight said it all. The stories of Dela milking the fans are complete BS, sure his last few fights were not the best but other guys win a title and make a career out of such fights.
Hall of Famer, no doubt. Historically, I'd rate him on the level of Hall of Famers Carlos Palomino, Curtis Cokes, and Pipino Cuevas at 147 which is outstanding, though not the elite level that is reserved for guys like Napoles, Robinson, Walker, Armstrong, Leonard, and Hearns.
Would've been good to see him kill Chavez Jr in a farewell fight in Mexico or L.A. Would've been a grand event.
De La Hoya was robbed of victories against Trinidad and Mosley 2 otherwise he'd be regarded much higher than he is.
Did I miss something? I don't remember DLH announcing a retirement before this? Am i forgetting something? Personally, I was a big fan of Oscar's especially in the early days. I lost a little in the past 3 years, but I really don't hold that to him as I don't with Roy. Thanks for the fights and shutting up Vargas:bears:
He made the right choice. At this point, there's no use in going on especially when your in a division where you have lots of young and hungry talent. I was never a fan, but he still had a great career and the most important fights of the past 12 or so years happened with him involved in them. I think he's got a great thing in his promotion company. That right there will keep him from even thinking about being a part time fighter. I wish Oscar luck and I know he'll succeed as a promoter.