Oscar De La Hoya is one of the all-time greats, but even he admits he could have been even greater if he had taken his career more seriously.
The six-weight champion retired in 2008 after Manny Pacquiao devastated Oscar De La Hoya in a brutal domination, forcing him to end his career.
De La Hoya had been one of the biggest pay-per-view draws in boxing history up until that point, but looked slow and plodding against the younger, fitter fighter.
That was all down to the Olympic gold medalist, who at 35 could have had years ahead of him if he’d looked after himself better.
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Oscar De La Hoya admits his biggest mistake was not training hard enough in his prime
Despite how impressive he was in the ring, De La Hoya could have been so much more if he’d taken the sport seriously for his whole career.
Speaking with Club Shay Shay, Golden Boy revealed his biggest mistake was his lack of preparation and an expectation that he could win without putting in 100% of the effort during his prime years.
He admitted that he was so confident in his ability that he didn’t train as hard as he should have, as he felt “invincible” in the ring.
De La Hoya said: “Not going in prepared 100% in some of my fights, really. Overconfidence. Too much, too fast.
See, I was this kid growing up with nothing in East LA. I didn’t really have anybody. Nobody gave me advice. I learned everything the hard way. I learned everything on my own.
There was a certain point in my career, probably in my prime or a little after, where I just thought I didn’t have to train hard or run that extra mile. I just felt like I was invincible.
And, you know, I had some losses. I had some close fights that I should’ve won easily. I was starting to go downhill, personally and professionally.
So yeah, this sport does that to you, man. Any athlete will tell you: if you don’t stay focused, this thing can eat you up alive.”
Despite the lack of care he took of his body during his career, De La Hoya has still gone down as an all-time great.
Oscar De La Hoya retired after defeats to Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather
Golden Boy’s career was clearly at an end when defeats to Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather proved that he no longer had the ability to compete at the top level.
Despite being eleven years younger than Pacquiao was in his last fight in 2025, De La Hoya looked off the pace against the Filipino in his last bout.
He failed to answer the referee’s call after the eighth round, retiring on his stool to put an end to one of the most legendary careers in boxing.
The previous year, he had gone the distance with Mayweather in what was close on the scorecards, but was a clear win for the younger fighter, who was threatening to take De La Hoya’s crown as the pay-per-view king.
That loss had inspired De La Hoya to go on a retirement tour, starting with the Pacquiao fight following a win over Steve Forbes, but he retired after being so soundly beaten by Pac-Man on December 6, 2008.