De La Hoya returned to action after the huge knockout of Vargas on May 3, 2003 vs. veteran Yori Boy Campas. HBO broadcast the mismatch from the Mandalay Bay Hotel, and it went according to plan. Campas was done in seven, without ever really putting up a fight. The bout was to set up the rematch with Mosley in September, who had defeated Oscar three years earlier.
On September 13, 2003, my brother came over to watch the Mosley fight on pay-per-view. At the time I was an Oscar fan, and hoped he could avenge the loss from June of 2000. ‘The Golden Boy’ won most of the rounds in my opinion, landed far more punches, and I was sure he had won a clear cut decision after twelve rounds. Unbelievably, the judges gave the unanimous verdict to Mosley, further proving to me that a lot of judges were bought and paid for.
After another big loss on his record, De La Hoya didn’t return to the ring for nine months. In June of 2004, he moved up the the middleweight division to challenge Felix Sturm for his WBO title at the MGM Grand Garden. I didn’t waste my money on this pay-per-view crap, and watched the replay a week later for free on HBO. De La Hoya weighed in at 160 lbs., looked fleshy and soft, and didn’t impress me in the least. Personally, I thought he lost, and was the recipient of a gift call. Sturm easily won the bout in my eyes, and it was clear to me that De La Hoya was on the decline, and now lost more than he won.
The reason the fight was given to him, was to set up his bout with Bernard Hopkins in September. That night I had gone to a dinner party thrown from my winter time job owner, and told my brother I wasn’t ordering the fight. He wanted to see it and said he would pay for it if I went to his apartment. I agreed, went home after the dinner, changed my clothes and made the 20 mile drive to his house.
The fight from the MGM was boring, with De La Hoya attempting to run, land pity-pat blows, and stink out a decision. Unfortunately for him, one left hook from Hopkins in the ninth to his stomach, knocked him to the canvas writhing in pain. One punch and it was all over, and it was another loss for the once ‘Golden Boy’. I really didn’t see any reason to go on, since he lost almost every time he fought. I liked the guy, but he was far from an all-time favorite, and went I left that night, I could have cared less.
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