Oscar Dela Hoya is without doubt an iconic name in the world of boxing and had his moments during his time.
However, now at 42, there are some who believe that Dela Hoya could be pushing his luck if he so chooses to get back in the ring. He doesn’t need the money and will simply be doing it for the love of the sport.
After playing with the idea, Dela Hoya has put a stop to all speculations that he is seriously contemplating on a ring return, officially saying that he is retired and will stay retired.
“I am retired, and after speaking to my family and following a great deal of introspection, I have decided to stay retired,” he was quoted as saying in an interview.
It was just a couple of days ago when Dela Hoya toyed with the idea and even baring that he sparred with a young unknown fighter and claimed that he did well.
Apparently, that gave him the idea of possibly returning to the ring. Was he inspired by what Sugar Ray Leonard did back in 1987?
At that time, Leonard came out of retirement after a three-year hiatus, moved up a weight and challenged Marvelous Marvin Hagler. Leonard would eventually win via split decision, making it one of the remarkable moments in boxing history.
"I think about Sugar Ray Leonard and Marvin Hagler. If [Leonard] could do it, why can't I? We both come from similar situations. We are both hungry for the competition, we're both ambitious. So you never know. At the same time, I wish time flies by so I don't have to come back," Dela Hoya was quoted from ESPN when he was considering a possible ring return.
Had Dela Hoya pushed through with his plans, he wanted to test the mettle of undefeated Russian Gennady Golovkin, someone who has been known to win via knockout.
Another name pitched was Floyd Mayweather Jr. who he fought back in 2007. He lost a slit decision that year for the junior middleweight championship, one of the best-selling pay-per-views in history.
His last fight was against Filipino boxing champion Manny Pacquiao in 2008. Dela Hoya was knocked out in the eighth round that year and has never fought since. He officially retired from boxing in 2009.
Though he believes that given the time to prepare and train, he can still show he has it. But that lurking fear of ending up with serious injuries, particularly for a fighter like Golovkin, is up in the air which may have eventually contributed towards Dela Hoya choosing to stay in retirement.
"My wife was all for it," De La Hoya told ESPN. "But my kids didn't want to see old Papa get hurt."