De La Hoya more convinced that Marquez can beat Mayweather
Posted Sep. 3, 2009 at 05:45pm
By Michael Rosenthal
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Oscar De La Hoya returned Wednesday from Juan Manuel Marquez’s media day in Mexico City more convinced than ever that Marquez is poised to shock Floyd Mayweather on Sept. 19 in Las Vegas on pay-per-view.
“He trained inside this little gym,” said De La Hoya, his promoter. “It was over 100 degrees. He sparred eight rounds, did sit-ups, and he wasn’t even breathing hard. That, to me, says he’s ready; he’s in tip-top shape.
“It’s going to be a good one.”
De La Hoya said he was surprised at how much bulk Marquez has gained without losing speed.
Marquez has said that he used the two extra months he gained when the fight was postponed because Mayweather injured his ribs to get bigger and stronger but also work on regaining any quickness he might’ve lost in the process.
“This guy is hitting hard,” De La Hoya said. “You can see it in his body; it’s thick. He looks like a welterweight, a small welterweight. That’s what Mayweather is, too, a small welterweight. I feel the postponement did Marquez a lot of good. Maybe he did lose some speed but the extra time allowed him to gain it back by working on fast combinations, using smaller gloves. He’s getting the speed back.
“I saw something in Mexico City that confirmed to me that he can shock the world. He’s going in with the mentality that he has nothing to lose and everything to gain. He wants to go for the home run, though. This is perfect.”
And if Marquez wins?
“He’ll be the biggest fighter coming out of Mexico since (Julio Cesar) Chavez,” he said. “He’ll be huge. This is Chavez-(Meldrick) Taylor all over again.”
De La Hoya also returned from Mexico with something else.
“It was a double-edged sword,” he said of his trip. “There was a tremendous amount of media there, which was good. That bad part is that I ate some Mexican food at a little taco stand. I think I’ve lost about six pounds. Other than that, the trip went great.”
De La Hoya is brave even outside the ring.
Michael Rosenthal can be reached at RingTVeditor@yahoo.com
“He trained inside this little gym,” said De La Hoya, his promoter. “It was over 100 degrees. He sparred eight rounds, did sit-ups, and he wasn’t even breathing hard. That, to me, says he’s ready; he’s in tip-top shape.
“It’s going to be a good one.”
De La Hoya said he was surprised at how much bulk Marquez has gained without losing speed.
Marquez has said that he used the two extra months he gained when the fight was postponed because Mayweather injured his ribs to get bigger and stronger but also work on regaining any quickness he might’ve lost in the process.
“This guy is hitting hard,” De La Hoya said. “You can see it in his body; it’s thick. He looks like a welterweight, a small welterweight. That’s what Mayweather is, too, a small welterweight. I feel the postponement did Marquez a lot of good. Maybe he did lose some speed but the extra time allowed him to gain it back by working on fast combinations, using smaller gloves. He’s getting the speed back.
“I saw something in Mexico City that confirmed to me that he can shock the world. He’s going in with the mentality that he has nothing to lose and everything to gain. He wants to go for the home run, though. This is perfect.”
And if Marquez wins?
“He’ll be the biggest fighter coming out of Mexico since (Julio Cesar) Chavez,” he said. “He’ll be huge. This is Chavez-(Meldrick) Taylor all over again.”
De La Hoya also returned from Mexico with something else.
“It was a double-edged sword,” he said of his trip. “There was a tremendous amount of media there, which was good. That bad part is that I ate some Mexican food at a little taco stand. I think I’ve lost about six pounds. Other than that, the trip went great.”
De La Hoya is brave even outside the ring.
Michael Rosenthal can be reached at RingTVeditor@yahoo.com
