Recreational Holidays

Boxing Flashback: Manny Pacquiao Vs. Oscar De La Hoya

Fighters seldom grow old gracefully, at least in the competitive sense. The exceptions–Archie Moore, George Foreman, James Toney–are few and far between. More often than not a professional prizefighter goes from being a legitimate contender to the brink of retirement in a matter of minutes. It can happen that suddenly, and most recently Mexican superstar Oscar De La Hoya was the latest victim. He looked utterly lost as a relentless Manny Pacquiao used his speed and workrate to completely frustrate De La Hoya en route to a 8th round TKO victory at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

There was much concern prior to the fight about Pacquiaos ability to handle the naturally larger De La Hoyas strength and power. That concern was completely ill founded, and the reigning pound for pound king began to overwhelm De La Hoya from the opening round. Pacquiaos seemingly nonstop flurries of strikes began to show their effect on De La Hoyas face as his elusiveness made it impossible for his opponent to retaliate with any offense of his own.

As the fight progressed, De La Hoya became less and less able to do anything except take a severe beating. Between the 7th and 8th round, trainer Nacho Berenstein told his fighter that he wasn’t going to let him stay out there and take a beating if he wasn’t throwing punches. After the 8th round, Berenstein pulled the plug and Oscar smartly didn’t object to what was clearly the right decision.

De La Hoya displayed the class of a champion following the fight, as he deflected Larry Merchants pointed questions about his relatively low weight to keep the focus on Pacquaios masterful performance. He stopped short of retiring in the ring, but certainly sounded as if he were leaning in that direction as he observed:

“At this stage when you face someone like Pacquiao, it’s going to be a hard fight. I worked hard and trained really hard to get ready for this fight, but it’s a lot different story when you’re training than when you are actually in the ring. I just felt flat, like I didn’t have it. My heart still wants to fight, but when you physically don’t respond, you have to be smart.”

De La Hoyas post fight behavior should be required viewing for all aspiring prizefighters to learn how a champion carries himself with class, dignity and respect for the sport even in defeat. De La Hoya is an international superstar worth nearly a billion dollars; if he can conduct himself with grace and humility there’s simply no excuse for other fighters not to follow his classy example.

The most poignant moment came as De La Hoya prepared to leave the ring to allow Pacquiao to enjoy his glory. As De La Hoya gave him a final congratulatory hug, Pacquiao assured him that “You’re still my hero”.

To which the defeated De La Hoya responded: “No, now you’re my hero.

Ross Everett is a freelance writer and respected authority on World Cup betting. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and sportsbook directory sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.