Golden Boy Challenges Dana White Over Oscar Credential

Dana White’s explanation for Oscar De La Hoya missing Ryan Garcia’s fight has already taken a hit. Golden Boy claims De La Hoya and other members of its staff were denied credentials for Saturday night’s event at T-Mobile Arena.

Dan Rafael relayed Golden Boy’s account on X. The company also said Ryan had invited De La Hoya and Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. to accompany him during his ring walk before changing his plans Saturday morning. Marco Antonio Barrera and Rey Mysterio received those places instead.

That ring-walk switch and the credential dispute are separate issues. Ryan choosing Barrera and Mysterio does not explain why his promoter was missing from the entire event.

White had denied blocking De La Hoya, arguing that Oscar was free to attend and simply chose not to come. Ryan’s comments during the post-fight press conference told a different story.

“I thought he was going to be here. They told me that he had a seat. I actually invited him to walk out with me. I thought that was going to be iconic. Everybody was asking where he was, and then just to have him walk out with me, I think would have been special. But it is what it is.”

Ryan clearly did not believe Oscar had voluntarily stayed home. He sounded like someone who expected his promoter to be in the building and had not been told why that never happened.

Golden Boy’s version makes White’s denial difficult to swallow. If several company employees requested credentials and were rejected, this was more than Oscar deciding he had better things to do on a Saturday night.

Security also stopped Teofimo Lopez from climbing into the ring after Ryan called him out. When Ryan tried to reach the ropes and continue the exchange, he was held back as well. Zuffa does not promote Ryan or Teofimo, so allowing them to create a major fight inside its ring offered little benefit.

None of that proves White personally ordered Oscar’s exclusion. It does show that access around this event was tightly controlled, which makes Golden Boy’s accusation believable.

The next answer needs to come from whoever handled credential approval. Dana says Oscar was welcome. Golden Boy says its people were rejected. Both stories cannot describe the same door policy.

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