The rivalry between Golden Boy Boxing CEO, and legendary boxer, Oscar De La Hoya and UFC President Dana White has been one of the most personal. But now, De La Hoya says he wants to move past it and focus on his boxers.
In the past, De La Hoya has been a highly vocal critic of the UFC and its current payment structure for fighters. In response, De La Hoya promoted an MMA pay-per-view event in November 2018, featuring Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz in the main event. Ortiz knocked out Liddell in the first round, and the event ended up being a flop.
Now, in a recent appearance on The Luke Thomas Show on SiriusXM, De La Hoya says he doesn’t think about his rivalry with White, assuming each of them is focused on their own tasks at hand. In fact, he even praised White’s job as president of the UFC.
“I wish him all the best. I think he’s done a phenomenal job with the UFC,” De La Hoya said. “I have my opinions in the past on how I feel about the fighters getting treated by the UFC, but at this point in my life, I have so much on my plate, I’m sure he has lots on his plate. I think we should just move on and him worry about growing the UFC and I’m worrying about Golden Boy and making sure that boxing keeps a shining light on itself. We want to just continue making big fights.”
This isn’t to say he’s praising White all around, however. Since Mayweather-McGregor, White has teased entering the boxing world with Zuffa Boxing. Zuffa was the company with which White, along with the Fertitta brothers, purchased the UFC in 2001 before selling it in 2016 for $4.2 billion.
With so many of boxing’s big-name stars signed and two years with lack of movement from the potential boxing promotion, however, it may be hard for White to get a footing in the boxing world. And De La Hoya sees anything White can bring to the table that’s especially different.
Can Dana White bring anything to boxing as a promoter? Oscar De La Hoya has his doubts #TLTS@RJcliffordMMA pic.twitter.com/cJchV4CpWO
— MMA on SiriusXM (@MMAonSiriusXM) May 3, 2019
“Boxing is a fragmented sport, yes, and at this point with our partners DAZN, with our partners at Golden Boy, we’re finding ways to make sure we continue growing the sport, make sure we take the sport to the masses,” he said. “But I don’t see any other formula that’s out that Dana White can bring to the table, other than him screaming and yelling and being vocal. That’s basically it.”
Original Story: Bad Left Hook