De la Hoya’s ring return knocked out by COVID-19
CEBU, Philippines — Oscar de la Hoya’s ring comeback from a nearly 13-year hiatus was knocked out by Covid-19.
De la Hoya was scheduled to take on former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort in the main event of a Triller Fight Club PPV card on September 11 in Los Angeles but boxing’s ‘Golden Boy’ was forced to pull out of the fight after being hit by the deadly virus.
De la Hoya, a six-division world champion, himself tweeted a video of himself in a hospital bed.
“Wanted you to hear directly from me that despite being fully vaccinated, I have contracted Covid and am not going to be able to fight next weekend. Preparing for this comeback has been everything to me over the last months, and I want to thank everyone for their tremendous support,” De la Hoya tweeted.
De la Hoya, 48, hasn’t fought since he suffered a devastating eighth-round TKO loss to Filipino icon Manny Pacquiao in December 2008.
ESPN and Yahoo Sports reported that ex-heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield will serve as De la Hoya’s replacement though it is still subject for approval by the California State Athletic Commission.
Holyfield, just 14 months shy from being a senior citizen, hasn’t boxed since knocking out Brian Nielsen in Denmark on May 7, 2011. — EBV
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