Club Shay Shay - Oscar De La Hoya Part 2
Episode Date: August 14, 2024In Part 2 Oscar De La Hoya's conversation with Shannon Sharpe shifts to the business side of boxing, as Oscar discusses the evolution of the sport and the increasing emphasis on money over consistent ...performance. Oscar also opens up about his transition into the world of promotions, driven by a desire to protect fighters and remain connected to the sport even as his own career waned. He also opens up about the time Jay-Z bet Oscar $250K that Miguel Cotto would beat Canelo.The discussion turns to Oscar's current role as a promoter, including his work with Ryan Garcia. He expresses concern over Ryan's recent behavior and the impact of external influences on the young fighter's career. Despite the controversy, Oscar believes Ryan has what it takes to be great, as shown in his bout vs Devin Haney. Oscar also addresses his strained relationships with other fighting figures, including Canelo Álvarez and Dana White, candidly discussing the fallout and the personal toll it has taken on him.As the episode draws to a close, Oscar reflects on his childhood, the trauma he endured, and how it shaped his drive to succeed. He reminisces about winning Olympic gold at the 1992 Olympics, a moment he considers the pinnacle of his career despite the immense pressure he faced following his mother's death. Oscar touches on the growing phenomenon of celebrity boxing, his thoughts on Jake Paul not taking "real" fights, and the idea of a potential fight between Jake and Canelo. Additionally, Oscar explains who would win in a boxing match if Drake and Kendrick Lamar's beef ever found its way into the ring and his answer may surprise you. Then, Shannon jokes about Oscar getting "Ai abs" and plastic surgery rather than earning his muscles in the gym.Throughout the conversation, Oscar remains grounded, speaking candidly about his personal life, including his struggles with addiction and the lessons he's learned along the way. He contemplates his legacy, expressing a desire to be remembered not just for his accomplishments in the ring but for the person he is beyond boxing. Join Shannon Sharpe and Oscar De La Hoya for an episode filled with reflection, honesty, and the wisdom of a man who has seen and survived it all.Get 50% off your first box of fresh, healthy food at TheFarmers Dog.com/SHAYSHAY #Volume See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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i'm in camp with these fighters training myself you know knowing what i'm gonna win what i'm gonna
make knowing what i'm gonna lose knowing what i'm gonna spend like I know all this I don't know why I know this but I from an early age I just it was just instinctual
for me I I had to take care of my money I had to ask questions I had to surround
myself with a good business partner and that's the key getting yourself a person
who you can trust he's gonna screw you over anyways so make sure he trusts you trust him the few years you're making all your money right he's
gonna try to screw you so that's when you have to be smart and cut the tie right you know
but it's up to the individual i i emphasize that because because whether you have an elementary education, a high school education, or you're
a Harvard graduate, you have to ask questions. You have to be smart enough with all the money
you're making, all the hard work you're putting into it. Don't tell me you're not just going to
let everybody take advantage of you. No, you have to keep what's right. You have to keep what is yours. You have to fight for it, you know, and ask the questions
and surround yourself with good people. 50. He tried to get into the promotion business.
He employed with people to try to do something. And then he got licensed in New York, correct?
No, we did business together, actually. Canelo fought Kirkland. 50 Cent had just signed Kirkland to a promotional contract. We had a fight together. Canelo knocked him out, and that was the end of 50's promotional career.
So he only had one fighter?
I believe it was one high-profile fighter.
Was that a situation where he tried to sign Floyd away from you?
file fighter. Was that a situation where he tried to sign Floyd away from you? I believe so. He was trying to do something with Floyd and then Floyd just got bigger than 50 or something. Eagles got
in the way and then you know how that goes. But yeah, the only business deal I've ever made with
50, Canelo knocked him out and that was the end. Not playing best ball DraftKings, you're missing
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What's the biggest mistake, be it in the boxing ring or in business, that Oscar De La Hoya has made?
Probably inside the ring.
I stood in there too long.
Yeah.
That's that Mexican machismo.
Yeah, it's got to be.
You got to go toe to toe.
Yeah, it's gotta be you gotta go toe to toe yeah it's gotta
be but also also not going in prepared fully a hundred percent in some of my fights really yeah
yeah why would you do that uh overconfidence um too much too fast see i was this kid growing up with nothing East LA that I didn't really
have anybody nobody gave me advice I learned everything the hard way I
learned everything on my own and there was a certain point of my career
probably in my prime or a little after my prime where I just thought that I
didn't have to train hard or run that extra
mile or I just felt that I was invincible and um you know I had some losses I had some close
fights that I should have won easy uh was starting to kind of you know go downhill uh personally
and professionally so uh yeah this this this sport does that to you man
any athlete will tell you that if you don't if you don't stay focused this thing can eat you up
alive do you believe now sitting back because you have the the magnificent science of hindsight
that had you trained harder some of those l's that you took, they would have been W's?
Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. I'm convinced a thousand percent.
I mean, look, I had a life outside the ring that was fast, crazy fast.
I sometimes ask myself, how in the hell did I do it?
How was I fighting, winning world titles and then going off and drinking and and this and
that and and i would show up in camp literally boozed up i would start camp six weeks and win
a world title like how in the hell did i do that well i don't know if it was an angel that was
looking out for me uh or it was just pure skill, or just being young and dumb.
Do you ever, when you're alone, you're in your bedroom,
you're sitting down and you're walking,
do you ever think, what if, had I just worked out harder?
Instead of a sixth division, I could have been a seven, eight division.
I could have had an unblemished record and when they talk about the two or three greatest fighters ever
oscar de la joya's name although you're an all-time great fighter do you ever think about
had i just given it a little more what could have been yeah but i don't i don't i don't dwell on it. I don't really focus on it.
I'm satisfied with my accomplishments,
but I'm more so satisfied with what I'm building outside the ring, life after boxing.
I'm just satisfied.
I'm at ease with myself.
I'm happy.
I'm at ease with myself. I'm happy. I'm just blessed. I try to live my life with the mentality of a Buddhist.
Just treat everybody right.
Brush everything off.
Everything will be okay.
My partner gets annoyed with it.
But it's just the way I've lived life.
Right.
I've been through the chaos.
I've been through hell and back seven times, so I'm good.
Let's talk about a fighter.
I think you still promote him, Ryan Garcia.
Yes.
Oscar, what's going on?
Look, first of all, every time I've spoken to Ryan,
every time that I talk to him on the phone, in person,
he's always nice.
He's always talking to me.
Yeah, we have big plans.
I'm motivated.
I want to make a lot of money.
And Ryan's Ryan, right?
But every time we talk, everything's great.
And then I pick up the phone.
I see Twitter.
I see Instagram.
I'm like, oh my gosh.
My gosh, what are you doing?
What are you doing?
A lot of money.
Good looking kid.
Just like me.
And I've given him advice.
I've told him, hey, look out for this look out for that but
ryan's ryan i have no idea what he's thinking or what he's doing a wise man will learn from
others mistakes a fool will learn from his own now considering your heritage you fought
your promoter.
If I'm going to take advice from anybody, I'm going to take it from you.
Absolutely.
You can tell me the pitfalls.
You can tell me the blind spots that I have no idea exist.
Sure, sure.
Because you've been there.
You've walked this path before.
You're absolutely correct.
It seems like you guys have a very, very contentious relationship, especially like, like you said, privately when you pick up the phone and call it. But then when I see you guys at press conference, I'm like, bro, that's your pro.
I thought y'all was on the same team.
You know, boxing is like the wild, wild west.
There's people that want to steal your fighters.
There's people, advisors, other managers, promoters.
Everybody's always talking to the fighters.
So they're in his ear.
Always.
Oh, Oscar's the bad guy.
Oh, Oscar's going to steal from you.
Oh, Oscar's not going to promote you right.
Well, I have the experience.
I mean, look at Canelo's career.
Look at Floyd's 16 fights that I promoted.
Look at all the big events I've put together. Of course, I've had the experience, but when these whispers are in their ears every single day, I mean, you're literally swimming up the current. It's impossible to convince these young kids. And they're kids right you know i don't blame them i blame whoever is around them the advisors
the lawyers who are money hungry these guys who uh think they know it all well the fighter is
going to listen to them because they're with them every single day so when they confront me it's
like wait wait a second i'm the good guy here what are talking about? I just want to make you a lot of money and make you a legend.
I'm a legend builder.
I want to build legends
because if you build legends,
then the money will come.
It's not the other way around.
Oh, I want the money
and then I'll be a legend.
No, no, no.
You don't work like that.
Work hard to be a legend
and the money will come.
His mental state.
He's been on IG and he's used the n-word he's used anti you know anti-muslim rhetoric um i think he was stripped the w uh
one of the sanctioned bodies one of the 20 yeah
so basically so basically we should look at the wBC, the WBA, the IBF.
What's the other one?
Well, the most important is the ring.
Okay, so that's four.
So we should only have four belts.
We should have one.
We should have one, the one that has no politics involved,
the one that fighters don't have to pay their hard-earned money to.
To be a part of.
Like, you literally have to pay a percentage
or a big chunk of your purse to the sanctioning.
Because for a belt,
I would rather just buy the belt at the flea market,
you know, for a couple hundred bucks.
Right.
But the ring belt is free.
The ring belt, you have to be a legend.
You have to be, number number one fighting against number two.
That's the only way you fight for it. Wow. That's awesome.
So I'm looking at when he fought Tank and there was a rehydration clause.
Do you feel that had he fought Tank, I think they weighed 140 and he couldn't rehydrate above a certain level.
Yeah. Had he fought it it let's just say they
fought at 147 do you believe ryan beats tank i believe he fought was it 135 130 yeah i'm sorry
135 so let me tell you all the uh yeah give us all the roadblocks and stipulations on the contracts
and this because i didn't negotiate that fight ryan's ryan's lawyer and advisors
negotiated that rehydration clause and the purse split and this i was just like let me stand back
let me watch them make mistakes i felt so bad for ryan because he was sucked up yeah he was just he
was a dead man he reminded me of me when i fought pacquiao okay okay and then
when the next day you can weigh a certain amount couldn't get over 140 it's i mean he's there's no
chance he's gonna win against tank who's a beast it's no chance if they fight again and let's say
they make the weight let's just say the weight is 140. Do you believe Ryan is skilled enough?
Because Tank did a great job of staying away
from his power shot, that left,
and did a great job of walking him into his left,
which is his sweet spot.
Do you believe if they fought again,
let's just say they fought at 140,
Ryan could beat him?
Well, at 140, Ryan's a big kid now.
He ain't making 140, Ryan's a big kid now.
He ain't making 140, huh? He's not making 140.
So he's got to be 147.
He's got to be 147, 145.
But don't be guns up there, Oscar.
Well, yeah.
I mean, you're talking about Crawford.
You're talking about Virgil Ortiz.
But you're talking about some big boys there.
But I really think that, see, that's why we have weight classes.
We didn't start with boxing, I don't know how many years ago,
putting rehydration clauses on the great fighters.
We just didn't hear of that.
That's why we have weight classes.
And so that's exactly what happened with Ryan.
Does he beat Tank if he doesn't have the rehydration clause?
I don't know.
I just do not know because Tank, like I said, is very skillful.
He's a beast.
He knows how to figure you out.
But one thing about Tank, which I love, and this is why he's going to be great, because he fights.
And when you fight, you're going to get hit.
And when you fight, you're going to gonna get hit and you might get knocked out
but that's the beauty about tank that he fights and that's why they love him that's a perfect
example tank davis is a star would ryan get his situation worked out who would you like to see fight at 147 I wouldn't mind watching him against Teofimo Lopez I wouldn't
mind watching him against wow there's so many fighters boots boots Ennis you
want to see him again both why not let's make the great fights. Virgil Ortiz. Wow. That'll be great.
There's a lot of fighters out there.
They are.
Errol Spence, Terrence Crawford.
Man, you can make so many fights.
I don't think.
It seems to me Crawford is hell-bent on fighting Canelo.
And he's willing to go up to 168 to do it.
Because I don't believe Canelo can drop down to 160.
He's been at that 168, 175.
He probably walks around.
What does Canelo walk around at?
185, 190?
90, easy.
Easy, 200, easy.
He's a thick kid.
Yeah, so to come all the way down to,
he's not coming back down to 160.
No, he's not.
That's a far-fetched type of fight to be made.
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um i think realistically i think realistically um terrence Crawford, Virgil Ortiz, Boots Ennis.
Those are modern, you know, Hagler. Yeah, exactly. Of today's era.
But seem to me that Crawford doesn't seem that they bring the bang for the buck.
They don't bring the eyeballs. They don't bring the pay-per-view vibes. They don't bring the butts in the seat.
the pay-per-view vibes they don't bring the butts in the seat he says it seems to me that he's like well i'm an undisputed uh uh you know undisputed champ yeah in the four ring four belt era yeah i
just got another belt sure seems to me he's thinking the only fight that makes sense is
canelo it's canelo um i think he's wrong i really do think he he's wrong. Crawford is in a unique position, situation.
He needs a B-side to create a mega fight.
He's that type of fighter.
Right.
He's the best talent out there in the world today,
I think pound for pound.
But he's kind of like in a teeter-totter
where it's like, man, does he sell or doesn't he sell?
It all depends on the opponent.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
You think Boots Ennis does what?
I guess a good number is a million pay-per-view buys.
No.
Boots does that?
No, not with Terrence.
I think the only fight,
maybe fights out there that do over a million homes,
because to hit a million homes, it's all.
There's a lot going on now.
Oh, yeah.
There's a lot going on.
People have short memories here.
So they want to see the best fight the best.
I think the only fights are Canelo, Terrence Crawford,
anything with Ryan Garcia, Virgil Ortiz, Terrence Crawford.
There's several out there,
but yeah, you just need that perfect dance partner.
Would you like to see a rematch with Tank and Ryan at 145?
Let's just say 144, 145.
I would love to see it at 147.
147?
Yeah.
Yeah.
That's a, man.
It's too much for, yeah.
That's a lot of weight for Tank, though.
It's too much for Tank, yeah.
It's too much for Tank,
but it still would be an incredible competitive fight because Tank, he has the dog in him. Oh, much for Tank, yeah. It's too much for Tank, but it still would be an incredible competitive fight
because Tank, he has
the dog in him. Oh, yeah.
He's going to fight now. There's one thing about Tank.
He will go down easy. He's slow
four or five rounds, but what's
he... He turns it up. Oh, man, it's beautiful.
He's relentless.
Floyd,
I guess, Ryan Garcia
and Floyd, they've been talking, communicating. What's that relationship? What's that dynamic between Floyd Mayweather Jr guess um Ryan Garcia and Floyd has been they've been talking communicating
what's that relationship what's that that name between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and uh Ryan Garcia
um well yeah I mean now now that Floyd see Floyd was a little idle in in the promotional
business for a while um now that he started again um he hired an individual that I was actually my ex-CEO.
Funny stories about that.
Schaefer?
Yes.
So now that he started up again, yeah, it's, do I worry?
No, because Floyd is probably talking to him as fighter to fighter.
Right.
You know, maybe he's slipping in some business
you know hey come sign with me or this and that but look i mean ryan ryan knows exactly who uh
who helped him out ryan knows ryan's a loyal guy who can in boxing who uh who he'll tell me
if he wants to leave me or he wants to stay with me. And, you know, plus we have a contract.
Do you think Floyd will make a great trainer?
I think so.
I think he'll make a great trainer like his father.
His father had something very unique.
He was a sergeant.
I think Floyd has that same attribute where it's like he takes no shit from nobody.
You know, like he'll dump.
I remember one time his father dumped a water bucket on me at 5 a.m. in the morning to wake up and to wake up to go run.
Nobody has ever done that. Not to the golden boy. Come on. And he did it. And I respected him from that day on. Right. Because you look at some of the trainers, Buddy McGirt, Floyd Senior. I mean, some of the some of the great trainers were fighters.
Yeah.
That's true.
But not like Floyd, historically great.
Because a lot of times when you look at an Oscar and we say,
the greater the player, the less the ability to coach.
Sure.
Because they're looking at it like, bro, why can't you do that?
Right.
I could do that in my sleep.
Right.
But that's what made you great.
Exactly.
So the thing that I have with Floyd, that's what made you great exactly so the
thing that i have with floyd there's no question he knows the game sure but would he rub off it
like damn that would be so easy for me one thing about floyd is that he's a hard worker so he'll
he'll he'll implement that to his to his arsenal right to to his training arsenal he'll make you
work hard just like his father yes um in boxing've only had, we have a lot of great trainers,
but we've only had a handful of great teachers.
Oh, okay.
That's the difference, you know?
Emmanuel Stewart.
Yes.
Man, top three of my training.
I had seven trainers in my whole career.
You have to take a look at it.
Why do boxers have so many trainers?
You keep learning, you keep growing, you out, you outlast your trainer. They,
they can't teach you anymore. Yeah. So those teachers are not around anymore. You know,
like Eddie Futch. Yeah. Who trained, who trained Bernard Hopkins. I mean, those guys,
God bless them, but all these trainers want to be heroes now. You know, they want to get on camera. Hey, I'm here.
Look at me.
No, it's quite a unique gift that these guys had, that these teachers had.
And that's why I only had like three of them in the sport of boxing.
Ryan Garcia, Devin Haney.
You want to see a rematch of that?
What transpired?
Because he's been suspended.
It's a PD.
They say there's trace amounts.
So Oscar, what can you tell us about that situation?
When we landed fight week in New York, OK, Monday, I believe it was that Monday, the first call I receive.
Hey, please help us. Ryan Garcia is drunk in his room and he's with women.
I'm like, what?
Is this what I have to deal with the whole week?
Imagine if Ryan Garcia was 100% what he would do to Devin Haney.
Right.
Do I want to see rematch?
No, it doesn't call for it. I think Ryan just, he swept, he just mopped.
I mean, it was crazy.
You know, it was what Ryan garcia he just made him look
like an amateur you know i don't care if they say he was on steroids and this and that he was 30
up in that ring 30 imagine if he was 100 will he ever take it serious enough to be that 100
i believe he will i really really do I think, you know, in order to lift yourself back up, you have to touch the floor, you know? You have to slip and touch the floor. And I think if Ryan Garcia, and I know he has the strength to do it, I think he will come back better, stronger than ever.
I think he will come back better, stronger than ever.
Oscar, what's going on with you and Canelo?
You promoted Canelo.
Even when a lot of fighters left you, Canelo stayed.
Yeah.
What's the beef?
What's the head-butting with you and Canelo?
I literally feel, you know, Canelo changed over time. You know, when you start making money. You have $300 million to do that, Oscar. Yeah, you know, Canelo changed over time.
You know, when you start making money.
He had $300 million to do that.
Yeah, you know, he changed a bit, you know.
And yeah, it's just odd. You know, he's saying all this nonsense about, oh, that I stole from him and ripped him off and this and that.
First of all, I'm a legitimate company, okay,
where we make a lot of money and everything is by the book.
Come check my books.
Come bring in your auditors.
And he's done that over the years.
I just feel that a lot of times fighters
Fighters get jealous, you know, and I'm not saying this to stroke my ego or anything, but you know
I would walk into a room and Canelo's giving interviews
I would walk in and then everybody would put all their attention to me right? Oh Oscar the promoter
Oh this and that, you know, I just feel that it maybe got to him a bit, you know
then he started saying that I was ripping him off and this and that.
And it's pretty sad because I have nothing against him.
I really don't, personally.
I just feel that, yeah, and the whispers in the ears.
Right.
Another situation.
You always start off with good friends.
I mean, you and Canelo was good friends.
Now you guys butt in here. head yeah dana white the ufc
what's going on with you and dana you guys were cool yeah we were we were actually cool um
when i when i first thought about getting into the m, yeah, I strongly feel that
he just wanted to bury me, you know? Not have competition.
You know, he started talking shit about me. You know, yeah,
what does he talk about me? The coke and the pantyhose?
So what? 15 years ago? Like, so what?
And what, that I don't have friends?
And like, it's absurd because literally I don't even think about it.
We're in different sports.
Right.
He does his thing.
I do my thing.
Just because I wanted to start a little competition, he gets all, oh, me let me let me scream louder I mean
when a guy slaps his wife in public you know when a when his mom writes a book
about him saying that he's a douche his own mom that's all I have to say I don't
have to say anything more you know I don't know why it started.
I mean, the promotional thing,
but we were actually pretty cool.
But anyway, it's all good.
You brought it up, Oscar.
You had to build.
Oscar, why you let them snap that picture?
Which one?
The 15 years ago,
the picture you was talking about.
Oh, I was drugged up.
Yeah, I was drugged up.
I didn't even know it.
You didn't know you had put the pantyhose on?
No, no.
Have you ever tried it?
No, hell no.
Are you sure?
They're going to make me put pantyhose on hell now.
I ain't going to try.
I ain't going to try this.
OK, OK.
Think about it.
To get those pantyhose on?
Yeah.
God damn it.
But it'll take like two hours.
But that's what I'm over.
Oscar. Yeah. There you had oscar yeah there you had i
mean you had to go by the size when you was not so no no no what happened what happened was and
i've talked about this a lot in my documentary too because i'm i'm open about it yeah fuck um
i was i was getting with bad people this that. Two women come in my room with a suitcase.
That's all I remember.
And after that, I wake up the next day.
What was in the suitcase?
Women's clothes.
Oh.
Yeah, women's clothes, drugs, this, that.
Yeah, they set me up.
But it's okay.
It happens.
So what?
You mentioned that during your career.
Did you partake in drugs during your career?
No, no.
No, I couldn't because-
They tested.
Yeah, they tested you.
I didn't drink, smoke, drugs.
But women were your vice, though.
I was a professional.
When you boxed, women were your vice.
I mean, we're human, right?
But I started drinking in the Pacquiao fight.
Okay.
I was drinking in the Pacquiao fight.
The last two weeks, my training was going bad.
I was getting beat up in sparring.
Damn.
And I said, you know what?
Let me just booze it up.
And that's what happened.
Did you know, did you try to like suppress that
from coming out because you knew that was good oscar you know who you are you're oscar de la
jolla you're the golden boy you're a gold medalist you're a six division champ sure do you understand
how that was going to make you look if that those pictures ever came forward no no i actually i actually um another story that
people don't know when they when they came out yeah i was fucking worried as hell because i was
at the peak of my career yes and i was having issues with uh you know domestically at home you
know uh with your wife yeah with all that stuff and so uh they made me first of all we hired a this forensic like expert and photos and
Photoshop we actually convinced the people that they were fake fake yeah and
I was home free right and then they and then the person at the time that I was
with convinced me to do an interview and tell the world, you know what, they're real.
Why the hell would you do that?
Because I was a shell of my own self at the time.
I didn't know what I was thinking.
But I'm glad I did it because I'm glad I said they were real because it set me free.
Really?
Oh, yeah.
Yeah, they're out there 15 years ago, so what?
I mean, what?
I bet if I asked 30 people here,
20 of them say, yeah, I've worn something from a
woman. In closed
doors. That's what happens.
Mine just came out publicly.
Y'all don't know about that, Oscar.
Come on. Hey, come on.
Let me see.
I ain't even got no socks, so I know I ain't wearing no pantyhose.
I ain't wearing no pantyhose.
Let me ask you this.
Give me your top three Mexican fighters of all time.
Of all time.
Ooh, they got some good ones.
Julio Cesar Chavez.
De La Hoya.
Salvador Sanchez.
Salvador Sanchez was a good one.
He passed at an early age, but he beat Azuma Nelson in his prime.
I think he died at 22, 23.
Could have been the best.
Roy Jones mentioned him when I spoke to him.
Salvador Sanchez.
There's a fighter that people won't know of.
They call him El Pulas.
You have Julio Cesar Chavez.
Canelo's going to be up there top 10.
So, yeah.
Ricardo Lopez.
Oh, Ricardo Lopez, who was undefeated as well.
I think he had one draw.
He was 50-0 and one draw.
But a lot of great Mexican fighters.
But I have to respect Canelo with what he's accomplished,
and I'll put him top 10.
Wow.
Top 10?
I ain't asking for three, so he ain't going to guess.
I'll put him top 10.
Wow.
Top 10?
I ain't asking for three, so he ain't going to guess.
I guess if he top 10, he ain't making your top three.
Do you remember the 92 Olympics?
Because that was the first year they bought the NBA, the dream team.
And they took all, they were, ooh, everybody, the dream team.
Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, Magic Johnson, Oscar de la Hoya, Barcelona.
This was a lifetime, a culmination of a lifetime because you dreamt of being an Olympic gold medalist. Sure.
It's by far the best moment of my life, you know, professionally, inside the ring.
At the same time, you know, I was cursed, you know, at the same time, I was cursed.
At the same time.
It was like the best moment and the worst moment of my life because my mother wasn't there.
She had passed away from cancer the year prior.
So you can imagine all the emotions.
I was just a kid.
So listening to the national anthem, right?
USA's playing and man, I'm just full of emotions.
I couldn't cry cry I couldn't laugh
um yeah the best moment of my life I go down get out of the ring and NBC is Fred Rogan is gonna
interview me and he mentions my mom and I just lost it lost it I couldn't do the end I just
cried and cried and cried so it was a lot of pressure. But I was man. It was it was a surreal moment. It was the best moment that I've ever had.
Do you did. And I say and I tell people this a lot of time. The heavy weight, the heaviest weight you can carry is expectations.
And you know what the expectations were going into Barcelona, not only because you're fighting for something more than a gold medal your mom
Yeah, you know, she's watching and the expectation from the Americans back home sure that you're supposed Oscar de la Hoya gonna win
The gold medal. I don't know how many else we gonna win. We don't win that one
And it was all a lie
It was all a lie
Imagine that the media made up the whole story that I was in my mom's deathbed and she whispered, win the gold medal for me. She didn't do that. It didn't happen. The media was just feeding it to me and I was hearing it and I believed it.
And they would ask me, hey, Oscar, so you're doing it for your mom?
Yeah, I'm doing it for my mom, for her cancer.
I hope she beats it, this, that.
And I ran with it.
And the whole world ran with it.
Yeah, the pressure was just too much.
There were times I fought, I believe it was South Africa.
I beat them easy.
But after that fight, I wanted to give up because the pressure was too much i was like the darling in the in barcelona oh oscar has the great story you
the golden boy then right no actually they named me the golden boy when i won the gold right but
the pressure early on was just i i i would never wish any type of pressure like that for anybody.
You could feel it. You knew.
Oh, it was, I wanted to quit. In the Olympics, I wanted to quit in the Olympics. Yeah. It was
too much. Can I ask you this, Oscar? How did your upbringing, childhood, there's some situations
that happened. You mentioned, I think you talked about in your documentary, that you were raped at the age of 13 by a 35-year-old woman in Hawaii.
How did your upbringing shape the...
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Oscar de la Hoya, they're sitting in front of me today.
Yeah, look, I got taken advantage of.
You know, when you're 15 years old and, I mean, at 15 your hormones are like, oh my God, they're like just jumping up and down.
And older woman, you know, takes advantage of me.
That's it. That was it, you know, takes advantage of me. That's it.
That was it.
You know, did it scar me?
Did it change my mentality towards women?
This and that, like it does something to you.
But again, you're your own individual to figure it out.
I grew up in tough streets.
I grew up in a tough family.
I grew up with a mom who used to beat me every freaking day.
Wow.
I had a father who just, my connection with him was boxing.
You know, he was military. And but it made me tough.
It made me who I am. It made me if it wasn't for my childhood, I would have quit in the Olympics.
Wow. That's the toughness I needed to win the gold did you realize
not only did you have a country that were counting on you to bring that gold
medal home but your family people that you grew up with you talked about your
father and the connection that you had through boxing and your mom who had
passed away because clearly she wanted to see you become something absolutely
of course people want people want free money people want people want to see the bank grow
right people want to see you successful because of things you know you thought your mom and dad
thought that that you were you were you were the meal ticket. You were the lottery ticket that was going to take them out of East L.A.
I was the lottery ticket for everybody and still am.
I've been living this for 40 years.
Shannon, you have no idea how many people.
I have around me that love me for me.
I can count them and maybe three fingers.
And I'm OK with with that because over the years
i had a million people around me that love me that i felt love me but why am i going to my house
crying myself to sleep if i have a thousand people around me who love me now guess what i have three
people who love me maybe i know one for sure but i have people here that love me and i'm going
Maybe, I know one for sure, but I have people here that love me
and I'm going to bed, smiling and laughing and happy.
Why is that?
With less people, it's just life.
You will live and you will learn,
the hard way or the easy way.
I've learned, I've learned both.
Was it hard for you to say no?
Yeah, it was, it was impossible because I want you to like me I want you
to accept me to love me to hold me if I say yes everything will be okay now it's
like Oscar the thing is that your mom your dad family members they're around
you when you have nothing so the instinct is now that I have,
well, I want to make sure the people that were around me, what I didn't have,
because I'm under the impression that they love me for me. But sometimes you have to tell the
people that you love know also. Yeah. Well, you have to remind them and they can easily forget, you know, real fast.
I have to say my immediate family, like, I mean, my brother, my brother's awesome.
I love my brother.
My sister, you know, awesome.
You know, my father, it's like we had this relationship where, oh, I don't know.
Did you do it for the money or did, can I still pay him?
You know, and it has to be for life.
Right.
Because that's the promise I made. Right. So, you know, money it has to be for life. Right. Because that's the promise I made.
Right.
So, you know, money does a lot of things to people, man.
It's crazy.
And I learned it over the years.
And I have this experience.
And I see these young kids now, man.
It's just, just be careful.
Have your guard up.
Be smart.
Where are you on celebrity boxing?
I don't know.
This wasn't celebrity.
But when Floyd fought Conor.
Okay.
And we see some of these, what is it, Jake?
Yeah.
Jake Paul.
Jake Paul.
He's fighting.
Yeah.
And I read what you said, Jake.
If you really want to be taken serious as a boxer, go fight somebody that is a boxer.
Yeah.
And it's fair. Look look what i said to him is
fair i'm not i'm not criticizing i'm actually commending him for for getting in the ring yes
for taking it serious yeah for for promoting and helping out serrano the woman fighter
from puerto rico i believe it is and you know he's doing great things for fighters and for the sport
but if he's gonna take it serious the way he says he is, then take that route the way we took it.
Right.
The way the greats took it.
The way fighters who have to work their way up from the start.
Go fight guys who are going to test you.
Guys who are, not guys who don't have experience.
That play football, that play basketball.
It's not like being a fighter a boxer i strongly feel that jake paul has the ability
he really does and the work ethic okay but every fight that he chooses it's it's not balanced
either he's an mma fighter either he's a basketball player, either he's smaller, 30 pounds lighter than him.
Okay, take the route professionally. Take the professional route. Take the route that Mike
Tyson took. Take the route that Floyd Mayweather took, that I took. The route that's going to test
you and it'll show you if you can become world champion. You don't think Tyson is a serious opponent for him?
Come on.
61 years.
I saw him the other day.
I love Tyson.
I told him.
He can punch.
Of course.
He's got a puncher's chance the first three rounds.
I'm a little scared of Tyson getting hurt after the third round.
Right.
Jake Paul's a big boy.
He's, what, 26 years old?
Tyson's 61.
I'm happy for Tyson that he's making money and that Tyson still loves it and he's getting in there.
He's in shape.
Right.
But just be careful.
Jake Paul said he wants to fight Canelo.
You make that fight happen?
I can make it happen, but canelo hates the shit out of me
it'd be a lot of money it'll be a lot of money but still it's not it's not legacy it's not legacy
it's not no canelo i don't think has anything to prove i think canelo
um you know he's he's obviously now fighting for the money.
Right.
Which I don't blame him for.
Right.
As long as he fights.
But, for instance, not taking Benavidez, which the world is urging him to.
You know, it's bad for his reputation.
It's bad for Canelo's legacy for not taking that prime fighter in his career.
Well, I don't know how closely you follow this, but since we, you know,
you're a fighter, you know the fight game.
Drake, Kendrick Lamar, who won that one?
Wow.
Jeez.
I don't know if both guys, have they trained? Have they fought?
Yeah, I don't know. I'm going with, I'm going to go with, I don't even know. I don't know.
Well, they had a disc going on.
Yeah. Yeah. Who's bigger?
Shit, I think Drake is bigger.
I'm going to give him the advantage.
You're going to give him the advantage?
You mentioned something that you were training your AI abs.
Were you serious?
Or you bull-jiving?
Because I can't... through social media, I can't tell when people are bull-jiving or
they're being serious.
It is just... it's crazy how every little thing I do, people will just...
You ask your neighbor, what are you?
Yeah.
So look, this is what happened.
Okay, tell me what happened okay this is what
people are gonna understand they're not fake abs like you cannot get fake abs
but it's called etching okay so where where the the plastic surgeon goes in
it's kind of like a liposuction okay but he etches your abs right my abs already
there I have I have a right they're already there they're just etching it in between so they can just pop out yeah and stand out more that's all it is now it's
up to me to keep these abs because i gotta i gotta work out i gotta eat right yeah so i mean it's
yeah they're mine they're real that's a real thing it's a real thing i didn't know you could do that
yeah it's a real it's like lycopene lipos man. I didn't know you could do that. Yeah, it's a real thing. It's like liposuction.
Right.
But they just etch the abs.
That's it.
So as long as you eat right and work out, you will have like an eight-pack.
I'll have a 12-pack.
You will be 75 years old.
Oscar, think about this.
You've been training your whole life.
You know how to get in shape i do
why you why you take the rich man way we do the poor man go to the gym that's the poor man that's
the poor man a plastic surgery i don't know i guess because i can you know i i've done it all
man i'm i'm so let me ask you a. I want to know So how did you come about this? Are you sitting in your room one night like?
I work by street 400 bill
I'm gonna get it. I mean, did you did you see a brochure? How did you even know about this? I
Ain't never heard this. I
I I want to look good. I want to feel good okay um i have i have my girl
my partner holly yeah we used to work together we worked together we worked together who is
probably the most beautiful sexiest woman alive ever and i to keep up.
I want to look good for her.
Right.
I want to stay active.
I want to, you know,
and I do have to admit,
when I met her,
it was like,
I'm not going to train anymore.
I'm not going to do this.
I'm going to be lazy and just kick back,
enjoy all my money.
But guess what, man?
She motivates me every single day.
Ever since I got her with her, man,
people are saying,
wow, Oscar,
you're a changed man i'm not
a changed man she just she just took care of me and and and nurtured me and gave me attention you
know and loves me that's all i needed i didn't need no rehab i didn't need no this and that and
because all these people were coming after me trying to get what I have and take me down.
You know what I needed?
I needed somebody to just care for me.
And I'm good.
I got all the doctors too.
And the doctors, yeah.
She has all the doctors.
So let me, throughout this interview,
you've mentioned your partner four or five times.
I know you had a previous marriage
and it didn't end well but
it's marriage something Oscar de la Hoya would consider again absolutely absolutely I mean when
when you're in love and you have a partner who I mean my partner now is is changed my life it life. She makes me feel like a man every single day just by something she tells me, something
she does for me. I've had breakfast on my table every single day for three years.
What?
Holly? What?
Yeah, Holly. I'm the man that I should be.
I'm getting emotional now because I'm happy.
Kid?
I'm good.
Holly, you fake.
Holly's good.
I snipped it anyway, so I'm good. Okay, you're good. Can I ask you say? Holly's good. I snipped it anyways. Okay you good.
Can I ask you this? Obviously you know your situation with your ex and your
kids. What's your relationship with your kids like? Good. You good? Great yeah good.
That's awesome. I mean not great but good you know. It's like I have older kids and
they have their own life and
they do whatever they they're gonna do I mean I look this is this is the way a
kid's life is is you know they they they love you they grow up they hate you you
know they leave the house then they call you for money it's just it's it's life
you know I'm here for them every single second of the day. I'm here for them.
Call me. I love you. We're family till the end. Oscar de la Hoya's legacy. What does Oscar de la
Hoya, when it's all said and done, Oscar de la Hoya is no longer here. would oscar like for people to say about him oh that he finally found
true happiness wow that he finally found a partner okay but you know what my legacy is
my legacy is not my six world titles gold medal this and that no my legacy is to say i stood
with my partner with a woman till the day he died faithful loving understanding yeah went through stuff
whatever but you know what at the end of the day they were best friends that's my legacy right
there that's what i haven't had a partner you believe you found the woman that that's loved
you more than any other woman i know i know and i believe it and i know in my heart every single day
every single day i wake up, I'm blessed.
Wow.
Oscar De La Hoya, ladies and gentlemen.
Appreciate you.
My man. That's why all my life I be grinding all my life All my life been grinding all my life Sacrifice, hustle pay the price
Wanna slice, got to roll the dice That's why all my life I be grinding all my
life you you you you you We'll be right back. days a week, you'll get all the latest news and the best analysis delivered by the time you get your coffee. The show hits every single game every single week, but I can't do it alone.
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