Jack Welsh
www.ringsports.com

Fight buffs who think Oscar De La Hoya views Luis “Yory Boy “ Campas as a walk in the park when they meet May 3 in Las Vegas is cavorting with a bad rumor.

Now don’t get me wrong, the charismatic fist-fighter from East Los Angeles isn’t trying to con the public and the media in the same breath about defending his WBC/WBA super welterweight crown in an HBO pay-per-view pairing at Mandalay Bay’s Events Center.

De La Hoya, 30, isn’t trying to be calm and overloaded with confidence when he speaks of this exercise with Campas, 31, as a “tune-up bout” but more honestly wants the masses to understand how costly any mistakes could be in this chapter of his mega-million dollar future. And the Golden Boy doesn’t dig mistakes.

It seems like a minute ago but it was just a matter of days now since De La Hoya called his final media session for a caravan of hypers from Nevada and Southern California before breaking camp at Big Bear, Cal., and pointing a comfortable limo toward the Valley of the Dollars.

There was a chill in the air and a smattering of snow but that wasn’t the reason Top Rank promoter Bob Arum decided to have a roll call at the Holiday Inn, a walking mile down from the Big Bear mountain facility where the champ hones his considerable skills.

I have been to this lash up at least 12 times since the 1992 Barcelona Olympics gold medalist emerged beyond belief as boxing biggest box office draw other than heavyweight championship fights.

And if the sometimes cynic assembly known universally as the Fourth Estate put this matinee to a ballot, De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather, Jr., his loquacious trainer, were winners in a romp.

There were junctures in Oscar’s soar to super stardom, when the handsome athlete told the public and media what he thought they wanted to hear.

None of that jazz this trip. Here was a fighter letting it all hang out from the heart about being a true world champion and what the sport meant to his life.

Oscar, now 35-2, 28 K0s, diplomatically failed to mention he was guaranteed $11 million while Campas, an ex-IBF junior middleweight ruler with an 80-5, 68 KOs resume, was pleased to collect $1million.

“Yes, I have referred to Campas as a ‘tune-up fight’ and there are times when it is hard to be motivated for it, but as the fight nears, I know the adrenaline will flow when I’m told the fight is sold out. I think about Campas lot and it will be almost a year since I stopped Fernando Vargas. I can accept that because I’m not going to get beat. I understand that Yory Boy has a very big punch. Just look at his record with 68 KOs. For this fight, Yory Boy has a punchers’ chance, but I’m not giving him that chance,” De La Hoya reflected.

Nobody mentioned it but De La Hoya was aware that Campas had challenged Felix “Tito” Trinidad for the IBF junior welterweight crown Nov.14, 1994 at the MGM Grand Garden.

Campas caught Trinidad along the ropes in the second round and dropped him with a combination but the elongated pride of Puerto Rico did not lose his cool and overwhelmed Campas on combinations to the head and body for a TKO victory at 2:14 of the fourth round.

De La Hoya admits Trinidad has never been out of his mind, being a victim of a highly disputed 12-round majority decision that cost him the WBC welterweight crown despite leading after eight rounds on scores of’ 77-75, 77-75, and 77-76. De La Hoya’s unusual retreat during the last four rounds left him short on odd scores of 115-114, 115-114, and l14-114 although most ringside media had Oscar up 115-113.

“I still think about that fight. It’s my fault if I don’t get a chance to fight him again. ‘Don King, Don King, let him go.’ I talked with Trinidad about 90 days ago in Miami, saying ‘you want to fight me, I want to fight you, so let’s get it on. Felix said he was definitely retired. Then a voice in the crowd yelled out, “How about $25 million?” Trinidad looked up, saying, ‘Maybe, maybe?”

De La Hoya is serious about the ring strategy he will use against Campas.

“I’ll admit I have to be very careful with Yory Boy since he does have the kind of power where I could get knocked out if I wasn’t. It could be that kind of fight. I think the style you’ll see me with against Campas is the kind of style I could be using in my rematch with Shane Mosley Sept.13 at the MGM Grand. The reports I get out of Tijuana where Campas has been training is he work is on speed. That’s what he will need to get inside
For those short punches, but I’m not going to let that happen.’

De La Hoya has an open mind on whether the 12-round title bout will go long or short.

“There are several factors, but I’d like to get in at least six or seven rounds. With Yory Boy, you never know...he is very strong and very tough but he has a tendency to cut. The five TKOs on his record have all come from cuts. If Campas cuts in the second or third round, I’ll move in to take him out. I’m sure as hell not going to get too confident like I’ve seen others do.”

Fight focus?

“I am ready physically, but I’m not
always thinking fight like I will when the bell rings in Vegas. Floyd ( Mayweather,Sr.) has pressed me to keep my left hand up throwing lots of jabs. That’s great but I’ve been using rights so much, I wasn’t using the jab enough. Now the move is effortless,” said the dual world champ.

“I have been very fortunate to have a innovative trainer like Floyd take over my career. I’m not sure what I expected at first, but I know we connected the first time in my office in L.A. I needed someone like a Marine drill sergeant to keep me in line. Say, I don’t
wake up on time in the morning, Mayweather might fire me. I like things like that. Sure, he says things I wouldn’t have the guts to say, so I let Floyd say it and take the heat.”

As a mega-millionaire winner of titles in five different weight classes, De La Hoya expressed his utmost appreciation Fr having an in-depth mentor who has shown him what the real world of being a pro fist fighter is really all about.

The ongoing Mayweather family feud has been well documented between father and son with nary an olive branch in sight. If dad Floyd watched son Floyd successfully defend his WBC lightweight crown with a 12-round unanimous over win Victoriano Sosa Apr.19, in Fresno, Cal., he did it from the Big Bear camp via HBO.

Neither De La Hoya or the elder Mayweather are upset that the 26-year-old undefeated 135-pound champion has been making a lot of noise about going after the Golden Boy’s 154-pound title 14 months from now.

Forget what you read or hear in the media in the coming months about a potential mismatch.

It ain’t gonna happen, no matter what the innovative Arum suggests.

“It’s nothing personal against Little Floyd. I wouldn’t take the fight out of respect for his father, who the world knows is now my trainer. If he did make the weight next year, by that time I’ll be retired. I hope to challenge Bernard Hopkins for the middleweight title, which should be my last fight. I don’t have that much time left to think about Floyd Mayweather, Jr.”

Floyd, Sr., is on the same page as Oscar regarding a projected fight with his son.

“There are19 pounds between the lightweight and junior middleweight divisions. When Little Floyd says the weight doesn’t make any difference, he is both ridiculous and stupid. I believe my son

0 would have a hard time making 145. He’d still be nine pounds under the limit. If he is being greedy about the big money, let my son go for it and get stopped in what could be De La Hoya’s easiest fight.”