Oscar De la Hoya: A Look at New Boxing Hall of Famer's Greatest Fights
Like all great careers, one of boxing's greatest stars put the exclamation point on his career with his enshrinement in the annals of the immortals this past weekend when Oscar De La Hoya became the latest member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
The 41-year-old Mexican-American fighter from East Los Angeles, California has had an impressive near-20-year career that has netted a staggering 10 world titles, 10 titles in six divisions, and an Olympic gold medal, becoming one of the most iconic Hispanic boxing stars in the history of the sport. A charismatic ambassador to the sport, the boyishly good-looking De Le Hoya was one of the sport's poster boys for much of his career (that "Golden Boy" nickname wasn't an accident). But he was also deadly in the ring, his blurring speed, quick, stinging jabs and relentless attacks on the body propelling him to a 39-6 record in 45 professional fights, 30 of his wins coming via knockout.
With a storied career that includes fights and victories against some of the top fighters in his day, De La Hoya has earned a place in the debate of "Who's the Greatest Fighter Ever?" among boxing fans and pundits. Want proof? Let's take a look at some of De La Hoya's greatest fights during his three-decade-spanning professional career:
De La Hoya vs. Julio Cesar Chavez
June 7, 1996: The up-and-coming De La Hoya, who turned pro barely four years prior in November 1992, earned a fight with one of the greatest Mexican fighters of all time in Chavez in a highly-anticipated bout in Las Vegas. De La Hoya wasted no time establishing himself, busting Chavez wide open with two jabs that left the Mexican fighting icon's left eye bloody. Four rounds of punishment from the lightning-fast De La Hoya was all it took for the referee to stop the fight, marking one of the most important-- and impressive -- victories in De La Hoya's career.
De La Hoya vs. Pernell Whitaker
March 12,1997: In a move from the light welterweight to the welterweight division, the then-undefeated De La Hoya faced a tooth-and-nail battle with the defensively savvy Whitaker for his WBC championship in a meeting of two of the best pound-for-pound fighters at the time. Whitaker's defense provided a tough challenge for De La Hoya, but a strong late surge from De La Hoya on offense helped "The Golden Boy" snatch a 12-round victory in his welterweight debut.
De La Hoya vs. Felix "Tito" Trinidad
Sept. 18, 1999: In a fight that helped put some clout behind the welterweights, De La Hoya, the WBC and Lineal welterweight champion, clashed with IBF titleholder Trinidad in a match dubbed the "Fight of the Millenium," which set a record for a non-heavyweight fight. De La Hoya was sticking and moving, tallying up points with judges before Trinidad got hot in the late rounds, winning by a narrow decision in one of the toughest -- yet still highly-praised -- losses of De La Hoya's career.
De La Hoya vs. Floyd Mayweather
May 5, 2007: In a record-breaking fight, De La Hoya put up his WBC Welterweight championship against the undefeated Mayweather, who was 37-0 at the time. The fight saw De La Hoya start off strong, but Mayweather caught a second wind late in the match, and behind superb defense and piling on points in the judges' column, Mayweather pulled out a narrow victory against De La Hoya in what was arguably a "passing of the torch" moment from De La Hoya to Mayweather as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the sport.
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