05.05.08 – by James Slater: “Pretty Boy” Floyd Mayweather was conspicuous in his absence last night at The Home Depot Centre in California. But as former “Golden Boy” Oscar De La Hoya struggled with all his might to make a comeback statement by stopping the much smaller Steve “2-Pounds” Forbes, Mayweather must have been secretly smiling.
Last night’s bout was supposed to be a showcase for De La Hoya, one in which he demonstrated that he alone is the most formidable opponent for “Money” Mayweather – the only man out there capable of taking away Floyd’s unbeaten record. Well, the show at the Home Depot Centre did not deliver as advertised. For Oscar, all 35 years of him, looked anything but the answer to the reigning pound-for-pound king’s dominance. Hit as much, if not more, than he’s ever been in a genuine Hall of Fame career, De La Hoya’s performance against Steve Forbes left a lot to be desired.
Don’t get me wrong, Oscar won almost every round, was never in danger of losing and threw more punches in the later rounds of a fight than he has in many a year. So why is it that Oscar’s chances of even holding his own in a potential welterweight rematch meeting with Mayweather now look like a veritable long shot? Maybe it’s because of the way “The Golden Boy’s” face looked after 12 rounds with the light-hitting former super-featherweight champion. Bruised, marked and swollen like rarely before in his glamorous career, Oscar’s visage showed all too well how easy he is to hit nowadays. If Forbes had had more power all bets would now be off as to how De La Hoya would fare in a return with Floyd.
And Oscar tried his best to get the KO, let no “De La Hoya wanted rounds” stories convince you otherwise. But the six-time world champion couldn’t get what he truly believed he would have got going in. There was no STATEMENT in this fight. Whether this was due to Forbes’ toughness, desire and sheer grit is up to you. This writer feels – no disrespect to Forbes – that it was due to something else – De La Hoya’s inability to do what he would have been able to do a few years ago. In short, Oscar is not the talent, the puncher, or the great he once was. Therefore the question now presents itself – should De La Hoya forget all about his attempts to beat Floyd Mayweather in their planned September rematch? Should the fans accept this proposed fight as a genuine and value for money contest?
Sure, Oscar is still a capable fighter. But is he anywhere near in with a shot at beating the sublime Mayweather? Even with Floyd’s dad in his corner, who would give Oscar an even money shot after the way he was hit so repeatedly last night? Though the man he beat in Stevie Forbes reportedly told Larry Merchant that the way Oscar fought last night showed he did indeed have a chance at besting the current pound-for-pound king, this writer has to put that down to a combination of good feeling and adrenalin on the Part of Forbes.
In short, “Money” will be licking his chops at the thought of going in with Oscar for a second time. With Oscar easier to hit than ever before, older and having to come down to Mayweather’s more natural weight of 147 as opposed to the 154 they met at originally, Floyd will be planning to KO De La Hoya in any rematch. As such, being as he is a smart man indeed, the 35 year old former “Golden Boy” should forget all about allowing his adoring fans to pay out upwards of $50.00 dollars to see him fail in his quest.
If he’s as smart as he appears to be, Oscar De La Hoya will make some serious adjustments to the plans he has for his final year in pro boxing.