Canelo Alvarez is set to make his return this weekend against Jaime Munguia. While there is a lot of excitement about the fight between two Mexican boxers, the promotion for the contest has ramped up rapidly. Recently, the organizers held a press conference where Canelo had a physical altercation with his old promoter and friend Oscar De La Hoya.
At the press conference, Oscar De La Hoya went in on Canelo Alvarez and their previous working relationship. The two worked together for 10 years where Oscar promoted several of Canelo’s biggest fights. De La Hoya also brought up Alvarez’s failed drug tests ahead of the GGG fight to get under his skin and judging by Canelo’s reaction, Oscar managed to do exactly that!
Canelo just went after Oscar De La Hoya after he called him out 😱 pic.twitter.com/M6ChJQCrWB
— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) May 1, 2024
The 33-year-old got out of his chair to confront the “Golden Boy Promotions” head honcho and started abusing him in Spanish. Although a physical fight did not break out, the Undisputed Super Middleweight Champion was visibly agitated for the rest of the evening. It has generated some interesting reactions from the fighting community.
David Benavidez and Conor McGregor react to Oscar De La Hoya and Canelo Alvarez’s verbal exchange
David Benavidez, the current WBC interim super middleweight champ, picked a side in this debate. There is a faction of fans who have criticized Oscar De La Hoya for the antics against Canelo Alvarez during the recently concluded press conference. However, Benavidez is backing Oscar over Saul “Canelo” Alvarez. It is not surprising as Benavidez has been waiting for his crack at Canelo for a long time.
David Benavidez reacts to Canelo Alvarez and Oscar De La Hoya’s press conference clash… pic.twitter.com/MPWwntA1IX
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) May 1, 2024
In an Instagram post, Benavidez added, “Put some f*cken respect on (Oscar De La Hoya) name!!!”
While David has chosen Oscar in this particular dispute, another fighting superstar has a different take. Former UFC double-champion and Hollywood star Conor McGregor took this as a business opportunity. “The Notorious One” recently acquired a part of the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC). Hence, he wants to sign both Canelo and Oscar to a fight contract and let them battle it out inside the BKFC ring to settle their differences.
McGregor wrote, “I’d love these two go at it Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship. Take off the gloves and fight, b*tch!”
I’d love these two go at it Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship. Take off the gloves and fight, bitch! 👊 @bareknucklefc https://t.co/EPX3lQVcrK
— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) May 2, 2024
While the proposed fight from Conor might not happen, fans can witness Canelo Alvarez defending his Undisputed Super Middleweight Champion status against Jaime Munguia on May 4 inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. While Alvarez is a heavy favorite going into the contest, it will be interesting to see if the recent scuffle with Oscar has any effect on the contest or not. But, how did their beef start? Let’s find out.
Why did Canelo Alvarez and Oscar De La Hoya fall out?
Canelo Alvarez was a young fighter who signed with Oscar De La Hoya’s “Golden Boy Promotions” in 2010. Since then, the Guadalajara native has found a tremendous amounts of success inside the boxing ring. He fought the likes of Floyd Mayweather, Amir Khan, and Gennady Golovkin. They had a fruitful working relationship for about 9 years. However, things went wrong in 2019.
According to a report from Sporting News, after Canelo defeated Daniel Jacobs via a unanimous decision in 2019 there was a disagreement between him and “Golden Boy Promotions.” While DAZN and Oscar wanted the trilogy bout against GGG, Alvarez had different plans and he ended up opting to fight Sergey Kovalev for the WBO Light Heavyweight Championship. Things started building up and the two parties ended their contract in 2020.
However, that was not the end of it as Alvarez filed a lawsuit against both DAZN and Golden Boy for a breach of contract worth $280 million. But, there has been no development on that front yet. So what do you make of this rivalry? Let us know in the comments below.
