The De La Hoya T-800 Says He’ll Be Back

With his December 6th Las Vegas bout with Manny Pacquiao on the horizon, Oscar De La Hoya made it clear to reporters in New York yesterday that his next fight will not be his last, despite previous assertions that 2008 would be the end of the Golden Boy’s fistic career. Oscar, it seems, is having second thoughts, and would like to give a few more opponents a chance to mess with his good looks.

“There’s no doubt about it. My mind can still do it, my body can still do it,” said De La Hoya, on the first stop of a promotional tour that will include such landmarks as the Alamo and Golden Gate Bridge. “I’m going to ride the wave for a little while.”

“I have to prove to myself that I can still do this,” he said. “Yes, I’m 35. Everyone says that’s over the hill for boxing. But I’m still young, I didn’t get beat up. So I still want to do this.”

Since there is no team organization to tell you when to hang it up–no minor leaguer or first-rounder in the wings waiting to take your spot–boxing has more guys active past their prime than any other sport. We saw this with an older, fatter George Foreman in the 90’s, and we see it with Evander Holyfield today. De La Hoya doesn’t need the money, and his legacy would be intact if he never put on his gloves again. Sure, he’s never really been hit, but who’s to say Pacquiao or some future fighter won’t change all that. Most boxers never know when to go away. They wait until Larry Holmes is turning their brains into pudding to hang it up.
De La Hoya plans to keep fighting after ‘08 [USA Today]
Image [Boxing.com.au]