- Oscar De La Hoya sent legal letter to Canelo Álvarez, according to reports
- This Wednesday the boxer accused the promoter of stealing from his clients
- DailyMail.com provides the latest international sports news.
Oscar De La Hoya reportedly sent a legal letter to Canelo Alvarez following the boxer’s explosive accusations during Wednesday’s press conference.
Alvarez, 33, went toe-to-toe with Jaime Munguía at Wednesday’s press conference ahead of their Cinco de Mayo fight this weekend.
However, it was Alvarez and his former promoter De La Hoya who almost came to blows in Las Vegas.
Golden Boy Promotions CEO De La Hoya, Munguía’s co-promoter, told Alvarez to “put some respect” to his name, claiming he built the Mexican’s career.
De La Hoya’s claim prompted an R-rated response from Alvarez, who jumped out of his seat, unleashed a tirade of expletives and accused the promoter of stealing money from his clients, particularly Gennadiy Golovkin.
Oscar De La Hoya (right) has said that he is “definitely going to sue” Canelo Álvarez (left)
The boxer and the promoter clashed during Wednesday’s press conference in Las Vegas.
Now, De La Hoya has stated that he will take legal action against his former client over the explosive accusations.
“I’m definitely going to sue for defamation,” De La Hoya said ESPN. ‘Imagine the damage this can cause to my reputation. Imagine what it can do to my business with fighters. [who] Let’s believe that. It’s awful. We pay [Golvkin] everything that is due to him.’
And De La Hoya appears to be making good on his threat when he sent a legal letter to Alvarez on Thursday, demanding that the boxer retract his “defamatory accusations” and also cease and desist from making any further similar comments. ESPN reported.
“I’m going to defend myself when someone talks bad about me and that’s what I did,” he said.
‘This was my perfect moment to let him know how I feel. She felt so good. Finally, I’ve been biting my tongue all these years, and I can finally say it to his face and put some respect on my behalf.
The tension that has been simmering between the pair since their 10-year relationship between promoter and fighter ended in 2020 came to a boil on Wednesday when De La Hoya appeared to try to irritate Alvarez.
‘Yes, I’ve been to rehab several times,’ De La Hoya said on the podium during the press conference.
‘Yes, there were some really low moments in my life. And yes, there were times when work was not my priority because of my mental health, which I had neglected for so long. But that doesn’t change the fact that Golden Boy built Canelo up during this period.
The pair almost came to blows after De La Hoya said he built Alvarez’s career.
De La Hoya’s claim unleashed Álvarez, who accused him of stealing from his clients
He then pushed Alvarez even further by accusing the middleweight of failing two drug tests, which led to the fighter launching himself from his chair toward the promoter and security having to separate them.
‘This idiot, this [guy] Here to my left, try not to forget that I was already ‘Canelo’ when I arrived in the United States and that he only profited from my name,’ said Álvarez, whose given name is Saúl but is now known as Canelo.
“He never lost a cent, but instead made money. Have you already paid Golovkin what you wanted to steal from him?
The furious Alvarez was referring to Golovkin’s 2022 lawsuit against Golden Boy for more than $3 million, money owed for that rematch with Alvarez.
“When the PPV numbers come in, the money comes in from the cable operators and it takes time,” De La Hoya said via ESPN.
‘And as the money was coming in, I was paying Golovkin and that’s it. There is no discrepancy.’