De La Hoya Feels He Has to Knockout Pacquiao

Posted by Ramon Aranda on 11.17.2008

Oscar feeling confident with a few weeks left to go.


Photo by Tom Hogan / Golden Boy Promotions

In a conference call with the media this morning, Oscar De La Hoya made it clear on his intentions to knock Manny Pacquiao out. "It would be a disaster," said De La Hoya on the topic of Manny going the distance with him. One of the topics Oscar has been questioned about in the build up of the fight is the importance for Oscar to look good, especially against a fighter who's naturally much smaller than him. Of course that brings up another interesting issue in that Oscar currently weights 141 pounds. That's six pounds under the welterweight limit though he says his team purposely worked to get him down to that weight so that his body could get acustomed to it weeks before the fight. This would mean that in the final week, he could simply eat normally and get up to 147 pounds. De La Hoya told us that he not only feels faster but also stronger. He pointed out that he did feel a bit light headed at first, but after a few weeks, his body has readjusted and now feels great.

Oddly enough, it is the "smaller" man that is currently the heaviest as Pacquiao has been reported and confirmed by trainer Freddie Roach to be weighing around 150 pounds. How this discrepancy in weights between the two figures into the fight will be interesting to see. De La Hoya said that he wasn't surprised to hear of Manny's weight and expects that the Pac-Man have no issues leading up to the fight. Oscar used himself as an example of a fighter who can go up many weight classes and still perform well.

Oscar also made it very clear that he plans on continuing his career after this fight and in reference to weighing 141 pounds, went as far as to say that he could very well try junior welterweight again sometime in 2009.

Whether this could be a hint as to a possible showdown with Ricky Hatton is anyone's guess but if Oscar looks good on December 6, you can bet that anyone from 140 to 147 pounds will come knocking at his door, though it seems like someone's always waiting to share the spotlight when's he wants to fight.