LAS VEGAS – Bob Arum stood just a few feet away from Oscar dela Hoya when boxing’s Golden Boy tipped the scales Friday before a boisterous crowd at the MGM.
The ageless promoter didn’t like what he saw.
“I’ve never seen him look so drawn,” said Arum as he walked out of the venue.
“Now whether that means anything or I’m just seeing things that I’m not really seeing I don’t know but he looks drawn,” Arum said.
The big boss at Top Rank said seeing Dela Hoya so “drawn” keeps him guessing how the 5-foot-10 Olympic champion in 1992 can cope with the hard-hitting Manny Pacquiao.
“When a guy is like that he’s really vulnerable to body punches. He’s ‘gonna put on weight and heavy on the stomach and he can get hurt.”
Arum said even at his peak, or at least in his younger days, the 35-year-old Dela Hoya had shown weakness in his body. In 2005, he was knocked out for the first time in his career with a big left to the side of his body, courtesy of Bernard Hopkins.
“(Felix) Trinidad also hit him with a body punch and he really got hurt and he started running. If Oscar comes in over 155 he’s ‘gonna be dead because that’s too much,” Arum said.