It seems every former boxing champion is eying a comeback to combat sports. The latest to announce his desire to return to action is none other than Oscar de la Hoya, the former WBC and WBO Light Middleweight champion of the world.
“The Golden Boy” recently told Fight Hub TV (via Bad Left Hook) that he is contemplating a return to boxing, though his fights will be the real deal, not exhibition bouts like Mike Tyson vs Roy Jones Jr.
And if he had his druthers, de la Hoya would love a rematch against none other than Floyd Mayweather Jr., while not completely ruling out a possible showdown against one of the best fighters on the planet and former associate, Canelo Alvarez.
“I’ve always prided myself in fighting the very best, and why go after the second-best?” Oscar said. “Why not go after the guy that beat him? Why not go after (Floyd) Mayweather, for instance, in a revenge fight? That’s something that’s very intriguing. We’ll see how I feel, and then we’ll take it from there.
Mayweather defeated de la Hoya in 2007 in one of the best boxing matches in the history of the sport. A year later, Oscar retired from the fight game following a loss to Manny Pacquiao and turned his attention to the promotion side of the game, working along many greats, including Alvarez.
De la Hoya and Alvarez recently had a falling out, as Canelo parted ways with Golden Boy Promotions after a lengthy battle. Despite going their separate ways, de la Hoya holds no ill will toward Alvarez and doesn’t rule out a fight against him.
“I would definitely think about it,” De La Hoya said of fighting Canelo, “but my eye is on a bigger prize,” said Oscar about rematching Mayweather.
“For any fight that you might have lost or that was close or whatever, it’s always gonna be a thorn,” he said. “I strongly feel that with the way I’m feeling and the way I’ve been training and the way things are unfolding, it could be very interesting.”
Of course, Floyd is in line to make his own return to action to take on YouTuber star-turned fighter Logan Paul, though nothing at this point indicates that it won’t be anything more than a glorified money grab sparring match.
At least in de la Hoya, you have an establishing boxing legend who is seriously contemplating returning to the hurt business to take part in real bouts.