By Geno McGahee
I miss boxing so much that I get excited for any boxing news. The return of Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield made my day. Watching Iron Mike hit the mitts was tremendous and brought me back to the times when I’d slap down my 50 bucks to watch him enter the ring to destroy some poor foe. So, if 53-year-old Tyson can come back, why not 47-year-old, Oscar De La Hoya?
De La Hoya, 39-6, 30 KO’s, was asked what he would do to Conor McGregor in a boxing ring and he noted that it wouldn’t last long and that he would win by knockout within 2 rounds. This has brought McGregor, 0-1, out to accept the challenge and now there seems to be great potential for a high profile money-making showdown between two of the biggest names in the history of combat sports.
McGregor made his name in the UFC with his only boxing match being a 10th round TKO loss to Floyd Mayweather, JR., where he did far better than expected, winning several rounds and landing some good shots before running out of gas and failing in the later rounds. The fight made an enormous amount of money and the spectacle of the event hasn’t been seen since. It’s fair to say that McGregor will make a lot more money in the boxing ring with De La Hoya than the octagon.
The last time that we saw De La Hoya in the ring was in 2008 when he was TKO’d by Manny Pacquiao. It is a fight that most likely sits with the Golden Boy. He drained himself down to a much lower weight than he had been fighting at and looked weak from jump. He also, arguably, underestimated Pacquiao and paid dearly for it. It’s difficult for a winner like De La Hoya to leave the sport on such a note and now he has the chance to take on McGregor, make tons of money, get the win, and also shove it in Dana White’s face. White and De La Hoya have been at odds since Oscar tried his hand at promoting MMA.
A fight between De La Hoya and McGregor would be another great spectacle with plenty of trash-talking and huge interest from fans of all combat sports. De La Hoya would be the favorite, but McGregor showed that he can hang with the best in boxing and could have his moments. Hopefully this will be signed.
