According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, former world champion Oscar De La Hoya has decided to stay retired after flirting with a comeback last week.
“Over the last six months I’ve had a front row seat as Golden Boy [Promotions] fighters including Canelo Alvarez, Bernard Hopkins, Lucas Matthysse, Jorge Linares and David Lemieux have stepped into the ring and shown what boxing should be all about — a commitment to fight the best, to respect the sport and to put the fans first,” De La Hoya said in a statement. “As a professional athlete and someone who has spent almost his entire life in boxing, not a day goes by when I don’t think about coming back — and the performances of these Golden Boy fighters has only added to my desire to return to the ring.
“But I am retired, and after speaking to my family and following a great deal of introspection, I have decided to stay retired. However, I do so with knowledge that many fighters today still pride themselves on the same principles that I adhered to throughout my career. It is now through boxers like those I mentioned and dozens of other Golden Boy Promotions fighters that those values live on.”
“To the many thousands of fans who over the last couple of weeks encouraged me to come out of retirement and fight again, I thank you,” De La Hoya said. “You can rest assured that I will spend the rest of my days around this wonderful sport, even though those days won’t be spent inside the ropes.”
De La Hoya told ESPN.com on Monday that he even sparred 10 rounds with a young fighter — he said he did not know his name — on Saturday morning and did well.
“I still got it,” De La Hoya said.
After the sparring session, De La Hoya said he went home to have “the talk” with his wife, Millie, and their children about whether he should pursue the comeback. He said the plans ended with that conversation.
“My wife was all for it,” De La Hoya told ESPN.com. “But my kids didn’t want to see old Papa get hurt.”
