De La Hoya has work to do before Mayweather fight

by Mark Kriegel

Updated: May 4, 2008, 12:32 PM EST 200 comments

After all, this fight — a full house of 27,000 at the Home Depot Center — had been designed with those stompers and chanters in mind. "Homecoming," it was billed.

Oscar De La Hoya, now 35, a pro since 1992, wanted a tune-up before his rematch with Floyd Mayweather Jr. But more than that, before his impending retirement, he wanted to be loved by his own. He might live in Puerto Rico with his pop-star wife, but still seeks the affections of hometown, East L.A.

This has always been a difficult proposition for De La Hoya, whose career has lacked for nothing but street cred. Going back to 1995, before his fight with Genaro Hernandez, he was greeted with tossed eggs at his alma mater, Garfield High.

De La Hoya has long been boxing's only transcendent star. Unlike any fighter in the history of the game, he's become a legit promoter, maybe the best of them currently out there, and a partner in the AEG sports empire. But even now, in the twilight of a magnificent career, it's tough for a corporate demigod to get much love in East L.A.

As it happened, he won that last round against Stevie "2 Pound" Forbes. But he didn't win any hearts. About midway though the 12th, the chant gave way to a smattering of boos. Actually, it was a little more than a smattering.

Forbes, who gained a modicum of fame on a television show called "The Contender," is a game and competent fighter — but no one could call him a dangerous one. After all, that's why he had been chosen as an opponent. Forbes' greatest attribute is his chin. He had never been down. And by De La Hoya's own admission, that chin signified his task, the difference between success and failure.

"I want to knock him out," De La Hoya had said earlier in the week. "I want to be the first. And I want to look spectacular."

He looked good for 35 — landing almost twice as many jabs as Forbes — but certainly not spectacular. After 39 fights, Forbes' streak remains intact. It was a pretty good fight as tune-ups go, but it didn't provide the knockout people paid to see. It did nothing to satisfy the fans' bloodlust.

The judges — Max De Luca, Marty Sammon and Marcos Rosales — gave only two of a possible 36 rounds to Forbes. That seems excessively charitable to the favorite. I gave Forbes three of 12. De La Hoya's jab was very sharp. He fought most of the night on his toes, and retains his reputation as the best fighter without a right hand. In the sixth, he opened a cut over Forbes' right eye.

"He hurt me twice," said Forbes, adding. "It was great to be in there and have the opportunity and not go down."

"I thought Oscar would have more power than he had," said De La Hoya's trainer, Floyd Mayweather Sr. "That's something we're going to have to work on."

Mayweather Sr. will be in Oscar's corner for the fight with Mayweather Jr. Still, apart from the Oedipal drama — and the marvelous production values HBO will use to exploit it — one wonders how exactly does an old fighter get more power?

Answer: he doesn't, at least not naturally. That's not to say De La Hoya won't have a chance come the rematch in September. He looked spry Saturday night. He didn't tire. What's more, there's always that chance Floyd Jr. — no mere contender, the best fighter on the planet right now — could fall victim to his own megalomania. Yes, De La Hoya could get a decision.

"I plan to go 12 rounds," he said. "I'm gonna beat him. You watch."

Then again, what's he going to do with Floyd Jr. if he couldn't put down Stevie Forbes?

Even De La Hoya, ever the optimistic corporate spokesman, had to admit a measure of regret. "I'm a little disappointed I didn't knock him out."