PUERTO RICO (April 11, 2007)… Inside a packed Wilfredo Gomez Gym in Puerto Rico, “The Golden Boy” Oscar De La Hoya held a media workout Tuesday, where he’s rigorously preparing for his May 5 “The World Awaits” WBC super welterweight championship against Floyd Mayweather . Below is a collection of quotes and photographs from Tuesday’s event:
KEEP TALKING FLOYD, KEEP TALKING—
“All the talking he’s been doing, now he’s gonna have to fight me, he’s gonna pay for it all. This is a totally different fight for me. I have to be careful, aggressive and still I have to think and fight my own fight..
“I’m a 100 percent ready. He better watch out for my fists. I’m in the best shape of my life and that trash talking really pumped me up.
“I’m glad he disrespected me because May 5 he’s gonna pay.
“I know I’m going to fight as hard as I can. It’s now or never, I have to be strong, fast and smart. What he does doesn’t matter I just have to execute my plan.
“I’ve studied him and he’s very insecure. He has all of these people around him as his cheering section. Everyone has to have a humbling moment in their life. May 5 might just be his moment.”
STAY FOCUSED WITHIN THE DRAMA OF A BIG FIGHT—
“I always take care of business. This is my job and I work hard at it.
“I always train hard no matter the distractions. I can handle distractions because of my experience in my career. This is what I do and my focus stays no matter what.
“I’m training here in Puerto Rico, and days in the gym my wife and my son Oscar Gabriel come in to see me train. When they come in I can see them in the corner of my eye and that doesn’t distract me, it just motivates me.
“My experience guides me through it all.”
BEING IN THE ZONE, VIZUALIZING THE FIGHT—
“Ever since I took this fight I have been preparing myself, I have started the visualizing process. I saw him fight and I said I can beat this guy. And at that point I started the mental preparation, I started to prepare spiritually and emotionally, and because of that now I’m totally at ease with myself and everyday when I’m training I feel comfortable, and that helps my training all the way around.
“This comfort will take me through May 5 when all of a sudden the light goes on, we’re in the ring in Las Vegas, and 18,000 people are cheering. The question is who’s going to crack, what’s going to happen? I’ve been preparing for that moment for these last months.
“Sometimes it seems like day to day is a blur, because I’m so fit, I’m in the zone, I’m meditating, and I’m relaxed, so everything just comes naturally.”
COMFORTABLE IN HIMSELF, HAPPY IN HIS LIFE—
“I have always found a way to be successful and I feel like I’m a good person and I have a good heart. If someone has a good soul then good things will happen.
“I don’t have any worries because I don’t feel I treat anyone badly. I’m a fair person and I try to do good things by everyone. I feel good that my mother taught me that as a kid. I carry my mother with me all the time, I feel like she takes care of me and she protects me.”
De La Hoya vs Mayweather “The World Awaits” is for the WBC super welterweight championship, Saturday, May 5 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. Promoted by Golden Boy Promotions, the fight will be broadcast live on HBO Pay-Per-View at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT and will be available to more than 61 million pay-per-view homes and in 176 countries around the world.
On Sunday, Apr. 15 at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT, HBO will premiere the all-access prime time series “De La Hoya/Mayweather 24/7.” The four-part series, with unprecedented access, will chronicle the fighters’ preparations for the May 5 mega-fight at MGM Grand and will provide viewers with a compelling look at two extraordinary champions.