Tag Archives: Oscar de la Hoya

Esparza Launches Pro Career with Multi-Year Golden Boy Promotions Deal

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Marlen Esparza is heading to the big leagues…

The 27-year-old Latina boxer, won the bronze medal in the women’s flyweight division at the 2012 London Games, has decided to go pro, signing a multi-year promotional deal with Golden Boy Promotions on Wednesday.

Marlen Esparza

Esparza, one of the world’s top female amateur boxers will make her professional debut in early 2017, Golden Boy president Eric Gomez said.

“I recently told my fans that I was going pro, and I am happy to announce that it will be the world’s best promotional company — Golden Boy Promotions,” Esparza said. “I am excited to get back into the ring as soon as possible and start climbing the ladder towards winning a professional world title.”

Esparza is the first female fighter signed by Golden Boy, which plans to become much more involved in women’s boxing.

“We really want to jump into women’s boxing,” Gomez said. “We feel she is someone who can revolutionize women’s boxing in the U.S. and bring awareness and excitement. Women’s boxing has been very successful around the world but we’re a little behind in the U.S. She is a smart young woman and she can fight.”

Esparza, who had around 200 amateur fights and lost about 12, won 12 consecutive U.S. national amateur championships and the flyweight gold medal at the 2014 world amateur championships.

She said she wants a world title as a professional and is very confident she will achieve her goal.

“This is a profession and a career for me but could I win a world title tomorrow? I could,” she told ESPN. “I could win it tomorrow but I want to do things correctly and fight my way to the top and do things the way they are supposed to be done, move my way up. I want to earn what I get. What I see myself doing is winning a world title when the time is right and when my team says it’s OK.

“I’m kind of for the first time feeling I’ve arrived. I’ve done so many things, but this (signing with Golden Boy) is something I feel I deserve. I am so ready for this. I’m not scared, I’m ready.”

She said she plans to get back into training right away and will go to England to train over the holidays with her good friend Nicola Adams, who won flyweight Olympic gold medals for Great Britain in 2012 and 2016.

Beyond her ring success, Esparza will come into the pro ranks already having established herself commercially. She has an endorsement deal with CoverGirl cosmetics and has appeared in Spanish-language television ads for Coca-Cola and McDonald’s, among others.

“Before she ever steps foot into the ring as a professional, Marlen Esparza has already established herself as a rising star,” Golden Boy CEO Oscar De La Hoya said. “At Golden Boy Promotions, we pride ourselves on developing fighters and transforming them into the best of the best. We look forward to doing the same with Marlen.”

Alvarez Defeats Liam Smith to Claim WBO Light-Middleweight Title

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Canelo Alvarez has a new title under his belt…

The 26-year-old Mexican professional boxer knocked out Liam Smith in the ninth round Saturday night after dropping him in the previous two rounds, winning the WBO light middleweight championship before a record crowd of 51,240 at AT&T Stadium.

Canelo Alvarez

The victory kept Alvarez (48-1-1) on pace for a showdown with undefeated, unified middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin that is expected be held by September 2017, according to Alvarez promoter Oscar De La Hoya.

“I fear no man,” Alvarez said in the AT&T ring through an interpreter. “I am the best fighter in this. About a month ago, we offered GGG three or four times as much to make the fight.”

Golovkin is a 34-year-old Kazakhstan native based in Santa Monica, California, who has said he wants the fight as soon as possible. Signals have been mixed from the Alvarez camp whether he was waiting to better negotiating terms and location as well as wanting to spend more time training at a higher weight.

Alvarez, ranked as the world’s best boxer, pound for pound, by BoxRec, had won a middleweight title but vacated it for this shot at the junior middleweight championship, sparking criticism that he was avoiding the hard-punching Golovkin.

“We are ready for him and he doesn’t want to accept,” Alvarez said. “As I said, we are a team and I fear no one. I fight the best and I want to fight the best. I am the best at this sport and Viva La Mexico!”

Negotiations toward a fight this fall fell apart, and some were surprised Alvarez said Golovkin had been offered a fight.

The large crowd for the Mexican Independence weekend bout will keep the home of the Dallas Cowboys in the running for the prospective match with Golovkin. The attendance record had been set in a Manny Pacquiao fight.

Alvarez was loudly cheered throughout the fight as well as every time he was shown on the screen during undercard bouts. Before the knockout in the ninth, his blistering pace of right uppercuts continued to take a toll and he opened a cut above Smith’s right eye.

Smith (23-1-1) wasn’t the pushover some expected when Alvarez announced the fight instead of meeting Golovkin. An inch taller and a little stronger, Smith had never been knocked down. He was willing take some hits while trying to land his knockout right. Alvarez was much quicker and had a strong and swift left while trying to set up a barrage of left and right body blows.

“If I would have waited a little longer and gotten more experience I would have been able to fight a guy like that better,” Smith said. “I am very disappointed. Canelo was too good. I needed better timing, my timing was off.”

De La Hoya Elected to International Boxing Hall of Fame

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Oscar De La Hoya will forever be remembered for his illustrious career…

The 40-year-old retired Mexican American boxer and Olympic gold medalist has been elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame in balloting results announced Wednesday.

Oscar De La Hoya

De La Hoya has earned the honor in his first year of eligibility.

“I am honored and appreciative to be chosen for the International Boxing Hall of Fame’s Class of 2014 and I thank everyone who has been a part of this journey with me,” said De La Hoya, who has struggled with substance abuse issues during retirement but also founded Golden Boy Promotions, one of the leading promotional companies in the world.

De La Hoya — “The Golden Boy” from East Los Angeles — won a 1992 Olympic gold medal at the Barcelona Games shortly after graduating from James A. Garfield High School before rocketing to professional stardom that resulted in his winning 10 world titles in a then-record six weight divisions (junior lightweight to middleweight) while becoming the face of boxing and a pay-per-view mega star during his 1992 to 2008 career.

“This is the dream of everyone who puts on a pair of gloves and steps between the ropes, and through the good and the bad, you always hope that when all is said and done, you put on good fights, entertained the fans and will be remembered for what you did in the ring. To know that I will be in the Hall of Fame with the greats of this sport is humbling, but it’s also put a smile on my face that isn’t coming off anytime soon.”

De La Hoya, whose titles came at 130, 135, 140, 147, 154 and 160 pounds, faced a who’s who of top opponents, including beating Hall of Famers Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. (twice), Pernell Whitaker and Arturo Gatti. He also faced the likes of Feiix Trinidad (a fellow honoree), Bernard Hopkins, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Manny Pacquiao, Ike Quartey, Shane Mosley (twice), Fernando Vargas, Hector Camacho Sr. and Genaro Hernandez.

De La Hoya (39-6, 30 KOs) was a heavyweight when it came to selling pay-per-view as fans of all kinds, including women and a passionate Hispanic fan base, flocked to his fights. His 2007 junior middleweight championship fight against Mayweather set numerous revenue records, including selling nearly 2.5 million pay-per-view subscriptions, still the all-time high.

Oscar De La Hoya

Joining him and Trinidad in the modern category of inductees (voted on by the Boxing Writers Association of America and a panel of boxing historians) is  ormer super middleweight world champion Joe Calzaghe, who retired undefeated and is widely considered the best fighter to come out of Wales.

They will be honored on June 8 during the 25th annual inductions ceremony at the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York.

Lopez Filling His Resume with Producing Credits

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Mario Lopez is beefing up his resume with more producing credits…

The 38-year-old Mexican American actor and Extra host has lined up a number of series projects as a producer.

Mario Lopez

Lopez, the host of MTV’s dance completion American’s Best Dance Crew, has a 10-episode commitment at MTV Tr3s for Golden Boys, a docu-series following some of the world’s top young Latino boxers. Lopez is executive producing with boxing star Oscar De La Hoya.

Lopez also has a series commitment for Conversations with Mario at Comcast’s Latin-driven channel NuVo. The series takes an in-depth look at some of the most influential Latino celebrities in the world.

At ABC Family, Lopez is the man behind Back To Badass, a pilot for a reality series that aims to take former star athletes back to the top of their game.

Lopez’s latest projects are in addition to the upcoming Mario Lopez And Courtney Mazza Wedding Special, a two-hour special for TLC chronicling the preparations leading to Lopez and Mazza’s December wedding.

In addition, Lopez is working in post on an untitled boxing documentary he’s producing and appearing in, along with Sugar Ray Leonard, Mike Tyson, De La Hoya, Manny Pacquiao, Christian Bale, Mark Wahlberg, Denzel Washington and others. And, Lopez’s Los Angeles radio show, On With Mario Lopez, has just gone national.

Vergara’s Latest Venture: Saving Lives!

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She may be known for her comedic chops… But Sofía Vergara’s next venture is no laughing matter.

The 39-year-old Colombian actress is partnering with Mexican American boxer Oscar de la Hoya to launch a website aimed at educating Hispanic families on the health issues that affect the Latino population most, including diabetes, lupus and asthma.

“There are 50 million Hispanics in this country and there’s no resource like this and we need it,” affirmed Vergara in an interview with PrimeraHora.com. “It’ll be something revolutionary to better and save lives.”

For the Modern Family star, the decision to launch the site is quite personal. About 11 years ago, doctors told Vergara that she had thyroid cancer. As a survivor, she has to undergo a series of intensive medical checkups each year to make sure she’s healthy.

“I take good care of myself and am very aware of any change in my health,” declares Vergara. “Thank God I am well and as head of the household and as a woman, this is something I have to take very seriously.”

No word on a launch date for the website.