Last Updated on February 29, 2024
Who Is Oscar De La Hoya?
Oscar De La Hoya is a Mexican-American former professional boxer turned boxing promoter.
De La Hoya competed in professional boxing from 1992 to 2008. He has 11 world titles to his name, spread across six different weight classes.
Oscar De La Hoya is considered by many as one of the greatest athletes of his generation. De La Hoya earned a ‘Fighter of the Year’ recognition from The Ring magazine in 1995. He was also The Ring’s top-rated fighter, pound for pound, for the years 1997 and 1998. According to BoxRec, the legendary boxer is currently ranked the 29th most accomplished boxer of all time, pound for pound.
Quick Facts
Full Name: | Oscar De La Hoya |
Popular Name: | Oscar De La Hoya |
Gender: | Male |
Birth Date: | February 4, 1973 |
Age: | 50 years |
Parents: | Joel De La Hoya Sr. and Cecilia De La Hoya |
Siblings: | Joel De La Hoya Jr. (older brother) and Ceci De La Hoya (younger sister) |
Birth Place: | East Los Angeles, California, United States |
Nationality: | Mexican-American |
Ethnicity: | Mexican |
Education: | James A. Garfield High School |
Marital Status: | Divorced; was married to Puerto Rican singer and actress Millie Corretjer (from 2001 to 2016) after the end of his relationship with Miss USA 1995 pageant winner Shanna Moakler (from 1997 to 2000) |
Sexual Orientation: | Straight |
Wife/Spouse: | N/A |
Children: | Oscar Gabriel De La Hoya, Lauren Nenitte De La Hoya, and Victoria Lauren Rose De La Hoya (from his marriage to Millie Corretjer), Atiana Cecilia De La Hoya (from his relationship with Shanna Moakler), and Jacob De La Hoya and Devon De La Hoya (from his earlier and lesser-known relationships) |
Dating: | N/A |
Net Worth: | USD 200 million |
Source of Wealth: | Professional Boxing, Boxing Promotion, and Other Ventures |
Height: | 5′ 10″ (1.79 m) |
Weight: | 66 kg; In pounds: 145 lbs |
Early Life
Oscar De La Hoya was born on February 4, 1973, in East Los Angeles, California, United States, to Joel De La Hoya Sr. and Cecilia De La Hoya. His father was a professional boxer while his grandfather Vicente was also an amateur fighter. So, it’s easy to see where Oscar got his boxing passion from.
De La Hoya graduated from James A. Garfield High School in 1991. He was a formidable athlete in high school, mainly focusing in boxing. His most notable achievement was winning a gold medal in the lightweight division.
Career Information
Oscar De La Hoya was already a promising boxer by his early teenage years. At the age of 15, De La Hoya won the National Junior Olympics 119-pound title. The following year, he bagged the National Junior Olympics 125-pound title. His other earlier achievements include winning the National Golden Gloves title in the bantamweight division in 1989 and the U.S National Championship in the featherweight division in 1990.
Oscar De La Hoya’s boxing star continued to shine brighter. De La Hoya bagged a gold medal in the 1992 Summer Olympics after beating German boxer Marco Rudolph. Thanks to this historic victory, Oscar earned the nickname “The Golden Boy.” His amateur career record includes 234 wins and only 6 losses. 163 of the wins were by knockouts.
De La Hoya won his debut professional title on March 5, 1994, after knocking out Jimmi Bredahl in the junior lightweight division of the World Boxing Organization (WBO). Four months later, he won the WBO lightweight title after knocking out Jorge Paez.
In February 1995, Oscar De La Hoya defeated Jon Molina to clinch the International Boxing Federation (IBF). Other notable wins by De La Hoya over the years include against Julio Cesar Chavez in June 1996 and against Olympic Gold Medalist Pernell Whittaker in April 1997. The decorated boxer finally bowed out of the ring in 2008 following a loss to Manny Pacquiao.
Oscar’s professional records include 39 wins (30 by knockouts) and 6 losses. He fought in six divisions, namely:
• Super featherweight
• Lightweight
• Light welterweight
• Welterweight
• Light middleweight
• Middleweight
Oscar De La Hoya’s Net Worth
Oscar De La Hoya may have retired from professional boxing in 2008. But his net worth has continued to skyrocket over the years. That’s mainly due to his involvement in other business ventures, particularly boxing promotion. As of 2023, De La Hoya had a net worth of $200 million.
At the height of his career, Oscar De La Hoya was one of the highest-paid boxers. He reportedly earned around $700 million in pay-per-view income alone. For several years, De La Hoya held the record for the highest pay-per-view earner before being edged out by fellow boxers Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao.
In 2002, De La Hoya founded one of his most successful business ventures to date, a combat sport promotional company known as Golden Boy Promotions. In addition to direct income from Golden Boy Promotions, Oscar also earns courtesy of the firm’s 25% stake in the Houston Dynamo.
Oscar De La Hoya is one of the few boxers ever to have undertaken promotional responsibilities during their active years. After bowing out of the ring, De La Hoya has focused his full attention on boxing promotion and other investments. In 2018, he added a portfolio to his promotional ventures when he began promoting mixed martial art (MMA) matches.
De La Hoya’s investment portfolio also includes a clothing line, merchandise, deals, and partnership deals with brands like Xbox 360, PSP, and PS3.
Lessons from Oscar De La Hoya
1. Know when to exit the stage
Oscar De La Hoya hanged his gloves in 2008 following a consistent decline in performance, which culminated in his loss to budding boxer Manny Pacquiao.
2. Retirement shouldn’t signal the end of income generation
De La Hoya continues to make big bucks even in retirement. That’s all thanks to his numerous investments, particularly in boxing promotion.
3. Never forget how you rose to the top
Oscar De La Hoya is known to express gratitude to everyone and everything that made him who he is today. He once said, ‘Everything I have in this world, I owe to the sport of boxing, and I won’t ever forget that.’
Famous Quotes by Oscar De La Hoya
• After doing an honest evaluation of myself, I recognize that there are certain issues that I need to work on. Like everyone, I have my flaws, and I do not want to be one of those people that is afraid to admit and address those flaws.
• I think my body went through a lot, went through the wringer. In terms of being inside the ring, getting hit, but also outside the ring, living a crazy life.
• The fight life, that was easy. This is a battle I have every day.
• There is always space for improvement, no matter how long you’ve been in the business.
• You get to be famous or have some notoriety and there are so many people who want a piece of you.
Summary
Oscar De La Hoya is one of the most talented boxers of all time. De La Hoya enjoys an impressive amateur and professional record that only a handful of boxers can surpass.
Although now retired, De La Hoya remains a household name in the global boxing fraternity, thanks to his boxing promotional ventures. He has amassed a net worth of $200 million as of 2023.