So who really won? It’s been 13 years since “The World Awaits” super-fight between superstars Floyd Mayweather and Oscar De La Hoya went down in Las Vegas. Did the world really await? Maybe, but not like the way it did in 1971, for the Ali-Frazier Fight of the Century. Not like the way it did for The Rumble in The Jungle in ’74. Not like it did for The War in 1985.
Nonetheless, Mayweather Vs. De La Hoya was a big deal.
The unbeaten Mayweather was crossing over to genuine pay-per-view status, while De La Hoya had been there for years. Some say Mayweather was jealous of Oscar’s fame, succes, adulation. The fight of 2007 might have come too late – with De La Hoya being past his best by some margin at age 34 – yet no boxing fan was willing to miss out now that it was here. Heck, Leonard-Hagler came later than it should have, as did Holyfield-Tyson, and Leonard-Hearns II. But a super-fight better late than never is better than a no show.
So Floyd and Oscar signed on, their fight superbly hyped by the 24/7 show preceeding it. It was massivee. It was monstrous. It was must-see stuff. But would the fight live up to the hype? Would it deliver?
Even now, 13 years on, fans are still asking.
Mayweather showed flashes of his brilliant defence and counter-punching, De La Hoya showed flashes of his aggressive counter-punching approach. Together the two gave us a decent fight, a largely entertaining fight – but no classic. The scoring would prove somewhat controversial in some minds: Mayweather getting the vote from two judges at 116-112 and 115-113, with the third official handing the fight to De La Hoya by a 115-113 tally.
Some fans and experts felt the fight should have been scored a draw, and that sure tells you something.
In the end, a good fight, a fight between two undisputed superstars, gave us a great night; a great event. But no classic fight. In fact, the boxing stars sat at ringside that night 13 years ago had to wonder what all the fuss was about.
For what it’s worth, this writer had Mayweather a winner by two points. But who really cares.
