|
 De La Hoya, who quit boxing soon after retiring on his stool at the
end of the eighth round of a lopsided 2008 defeat against Manny
Pacquiao, said he was "50-50" about fighting again following two
spells in rehab.
"I feel amazing," De La Hoya said. "In my life right now, I have so
much motivation. I am so hungry and so determined. I am young, I am
healthy and I feel great... 42 is the new 32."
Nicknamed "Golden Boy", the 1992 Olympic champion was once
considered boxing's top-rated pound-for-pound fighter and its most
marketable asset, winning world titles at six different weights and
participating in a string of megafights.
The Californian, who founded Golden Boy Promotions in 2002, said he
only had eyes for either a rematch against undefeated welterweight
Floyd Mayweather Jr or a bout against dangerous Kazakh middleweight
champion Gennady Golovkin, known as GGG.
Mayweather, 38, has said he would only fight once more before
retiring making that bout an unlikely prospect but unbeaten knockout
specialist Golovkin has struggled to find big name opponents and
offers a more viable opportunity.
"I just feel good and when I walk the streets, everyone tells me,
'You have to fight Floyd again, you have to fight GGG. You can do
it, you can do it'," De La Hoya said.
[to top of second column] |
"I just feel great physically. I've been taking care of myself. I've
been doing the Bernard Hopkins lifestyle. You can turn the clock
back to a certain time."
Hopkins, 50, is the oldest winner of a world championship and
unified the WBA and IBF light heavyweight titles until he was beaten
late last year, a decade after knocking out De La Hoya in a
middleweight bout.
De La Hoya returned to the ring two years after that loss to
knockout Ricardo Mayorga but lost a split decision to Mayweather in
2007 before his final bout the following year against Filipino
Pacquiao.
He retired with a 39-6 (30 knockouts) record.
(Writing by Patrick Johnston in Singapore; Editing by John O'Brien)
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