05.05.06 – By Karen Belford: We’re one day away from the so-called “Danger Zone” bout between Oscar De La Hoya (37-4, 29 KO’s), and Ricardo Mayorga (28-5-1, 23 KO’s), the current WBC champion, which will be taking place at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino, in Las Vegas, Nevada. What is still unclear, however, is how well De La Hoya, now a part time boxer, will perform against the talented Mayorga, who is one of the top sluggers in the light middleweight division.
On paper, this looks like a bad match up for De La Hoya, mostly because of the “Golden Boy’s” long 20 month lay off from the ring, combined with how badly he performed in his last several fights, losing to Shane Mosley, Bernard Hopkins and taking a lot of punishment in his “decision” over Felix Sturm, in June 2004. De La Hoya looked horrible in those bouts, in my opinion, certainly not a top level fighter or even one that you would consider to good for that matter. Whatever the reason is for De La Hoya’s decline in ability, one thing is clear: he has little power in the light middleweight and middleweight divisions and has turned into boxer, one with poor stamina, who thinks safety first at all times.
Although, De La Hoya has always been plagued with stamina problems for most of his career, it seems to have gotten only worse in his later years, to the point where he has turned into a six round fighter, for the most part. With the 20 month layoff, I can only imagine him being effective for little over three rounds before gassing out and starting to absorb punishment.
At today’s weigh-in, De La Hoya came in at 153.5 pounds and looked to be in good condition for a businessman. However, he didn’t look like a well-tuned boxer, to me. Honestly, he didn’t look anywhere near as good a shape as Mayorga, who looked absolutely ripped, and almost as good as he did in 2003, probably his best year in his boxing career.
Mayorga is not without his faults, either, having been stopped in the 8th round by Felix Trinidad on October 2nd, 2004. With a classic sense of bravado, Mayorga, known for his wild, unorthodox fighting style, was no match for Trinidad, who knocked Mayorga round the ring like a punching bag, before the referee finally stopped the beating in the 8th. To be fair to Mayorga, he looked badly out of shape at the time of the fight, as if he hadn’t trained properly. For instance, he looked nothing like the same fighter that he had been in his two fights with Vernon Forrest, both fights that Mayorga won in 2003. As was the case in Mayorga’s fight with Cory Spinks in December 2003, a fight that Mayorga lost by 12-round decision, where he looked like he hadn’t trained properly for the fight.
If anything, I respect De La Hoya’s courage for taking such a risky fight, if not his decision making. Why De La Hoya would even consider returning to the ring after 20 months of inactivity to take on someone as dangerous as Mayorga, is beyond me, for I think he’s out of his mind and asking for a whipping in this fight. obviously, De La Hoya’s not hurting for cash, having made more than $200 million in the ring over the course of his career.
Perhaps, De La Hoya might have been watching Felix Trinidad’s 8th round destruction of Mayorga one times too many, and figuring that Mayorga is an easy mark for him to pick off. However, I think De La Hoya has badly misjudged Mayorga’s ability, while at the same time, overestimated his own declining boxing skills. I anticipate De La Hoya trying to stay on the outside, as he usually does, and timidly pump out his jab at Mayorga to try and keep away. By and large, De La Hoya will try to steal rounds with his quick, weak flurries, while in between, he will mostly run for his life from Mayorga. Seldom will De La Hoya stop and fight, for fear of getting hit with a big shot from Mayorga.
However, Mayorga isn’t like the other fighters that De La Hoya has fought, in that he will keep constant pressure on aging De La Hoya, not letting him rest for a second. I see De La Hoya taking huge shots to the head in every round of the fight, while desperately trying to run away from Mayorga. By the 9th round, Mayorga will finally catch up with De La Hoya and take him out with a right hand shot to the head, sending De La Hoya to the canvas.
If you have any comments, feel free to contact me: karenbelford1@yahoo.com