Day 1 of the promotional tour for the Mayweather/De La Hoya mega fight in May kicked off in New York City in the company of several hundreds of fans and well over 200 media personnel as the spark that will eventually culminate into a brushfire was lit from first sight of the fighters. Floyd Mayweather (37W-0L, 24KO’s) certainly seems to be ready to do his part in the promotion of the fight as he spent most of the afternoon heckling De La Hoya, barely allowing him to get a word in during his designated time to hold the mic. After the continued interruptions from the Mayweather camp, De La Hoya said “This guys been getting under my skin for a while. He’s a little brat, and I’m gonna teach him a lesson”. He later went on to say to Floyd that “come May 5th, when I touch you, you’re gonna hurt for a week, and believe me, I’ll give you something to cry about”. The iconic and always charismatic Oscar De La Hoya (38W-4L, 30KO’s) was fairly respectful, but at the same time showed clearly with his body language that he doesn’t intend to be bullied or have to sit second fiddle to a fighter that he believes he can outclass when the bell rings. For Floyd Mayweather this is easily the largest scale he’s ever been on. Despite many showdowns with guys in the likes of Diego Corrales, Zab Judah, Carlos Baldomir, and a handful of other up and comer’s, none come close to the exposure he’ll soak up as the man standing opposite of boxings Golden Boy. Some in the sport have quickly faded under the bright lights of Vegas, but Floyd seems ready and eager for a shot to dethrone the man who nearly single handedly carries the sport which has lacked true star power on a global front for quite some time. While at the podium, the Mayweather camp spoke loud and clear to any and everyone that was willing to listen; Including a De La Hoya fan who felt the urge to yell out to Mayweather that “heart beats talent anyday”. Mayweather’s response to the pumped fan was blunt and to the precise. He responded “Well, 37 of my past fight opponents had talent, and they all came up short”. Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather’s cornerman then shot back some venom of his own to the fan, stating “We know his [De La Hoya] heart can be tested because he’s laid down before”!, referring to Oscar’s fight against Bernard Hopkins where he remained on the canvas throughout the 10 count in pain after a gut-wrenching body shot. The Mayweather camp closed their talks at the podium shortly after Floyd affirmed “Oscar can have heart, he can be stronger, and he can hit harder, but there’s no fighter smarter than me”. Most boxing insider’s agree that if Floyd is to emerge as the winner of this fight it will be because of his ring smarts and his ring smarts alone. Oscar took this fight only by getting Floyd to agree to many things that add to his obvious advantage in height, weight, and possibly strength. Even for the strongest skeptic, questioning Mayweather’s heart becomes a difficult thing to do when learning of the terms De La Hoya implemented and insisted that Floyd agree to in order for him to take the fight. A smaller ring size, a pre-conditioned weight stipulation requiring that Floyd CAN’T COME IN BELOW a certain weight, (which is a common tactic when a fighter wants to make sure an opponent isn’t too quick on his feet), the gloves were handpicked by Oscar, which are more padded, thus taking some heat off of the ‘thump’ of a lightning quick power shot. (similar to Manny Pacquiao when Erik Morales refused initially to let him use the Reyes gloves in the first fight and the result was minimal damage and then let him use them in the second fight and he ended up getting knocked out). Floyd’s only true advantage other than speed is his youth as he stands 4 years younger than the Golden Boy, but will that be enough in the end, only time will tell. All steps leading up to the fight will definitely be of high interest, and one thing for sure, the fireworks will be seen from thousands of miles away as fans around the globe get set for this mega showdown.
Oscar De La Hoya, Floyd Mayweather Kick Off 11 City Fight Promotional Tour In NYC!!!
Posted by Tim Starks on Feb 21, 2007 14:22
