“Nothing Negative, Nothing Bad”: Oscar De La Hoya Defends Bernard Hopkins on Ryan Garcia Fiasco, Ahead of Oscar Duarte Fight

Oscar De La Hoya may have landed Ryan Garcia his next big fight, but the fighter continues to remain bitter toward ‘Golden Boy’ and his promotions company. Ahead of his 2nd December fight against Oscar Duarte, the fighter spiraled into a war of words with the promoter’s minority partner Bernard Hopkins. Hopkins did not hold back in his response either. However, doubling down on Hopkins, De La Hoya has now come to the defense of his partner. 

Ahead of the Houston fight, a press conference was held wherein no one from the Golden Boy Promotions company held back, nor did Ryan Garcia. While the latter claimed that his promoters were favoring his opponent over him, Hopkins went ahead and publically declared that fight night would call Ryan’s ‘bluff.’ In response, the fighter came down heavily on Hopkins, diminishing his credibility, to comment on how long Garcia would last in his career. While Hopkins received some flak for his words, his partner, ‘Golden Boy’ has now defended him. 

“Nothing against Ryan,” Oscar De La Hoya stands with Bernard Hopkins 

In a conversation with Manouk Akopyan, Oscar De La Hoya continued to defend his minority partner with all the justifications that he could accumulate. His backing up of Hopkins comes as recently, the former gave an interview explaining why he thinks he’s able enough to comment on ‘KingRy’s career.

In the interview, ‘B-Hop’ explained why he said that boxing would call Ryan’s buff. He said, “One thing about this sport, like no other sport, if you say who you are, or who you think you are either way, it will call your bluff.” As he received flak for supposedly being unkind to Ry, De La Hoya thinks it was nothing against the fighter. He mentioned, “I saw the interview that Bernard gave, and it was nothing negative. It was nothing against Ryan.”

In the interview, Hopkins also said that no fighter who came after his era can ever bluff him. He explained that he’s been in the business for about 28 years, and he sees through the fighters. He noted, “We been there, done it, and seen it, so we understand what’s there and not there.” Backing what Hopkins had to say about new age fighters, ‘Golden Boy’ explained, “Bernard has been there and done that before, so, you know that’s the advantage that all our fighters have. They have a promoter who’s been a fighter himself, who has been there in that situation.”

The promoter suggested that whatever Hopkins has said about Garcia, it comes from a place of experience and holds no negative intention toward the fighter. Before his explanation, Bernard Hopkins had said the same. 

Bernard Hopkins supports Ryan Garcia 

In the interview with FightHubTV, ‘The Alien’ Hopkins explained that he would not treat Ry as a champion because he is not one. He further stated that he was not “in business of kissing fighter’s a**.” In strict words, he noted that he promotes fights and not lies. However, Hopkins clarified that he holds nothing negative toward Garcia. He, along with Golden Boy Promotions, only hopes for the fighter’s success. He said, “I would say that I just want [Garcia] to be the greatness that he thinks he is or that he is, and we support him.”

Also Read: “What Happens When You Take a Child’s Toy Away”: Following Press Conference Fiasco, Oscar De La Hoya Compares Ryan Garcia’s Mentality With a Child

Tonight, Garcia takes his chances to redeem himself after he suffered the scathing knockout loss at the hands of Gervonta Davis in April this year. His objective in this fight remains not just to prove himself in the ring but to also defeat the supposed efforts of his promoters to undermine him. Will he be able to do that? Follow this space as we bring you timely updates on the same. 

Meanwhile, what do you think of the Ryan Garcia- Oscar De La Hoya- Bernard Hopkins fiasco? Let us know in the comments section below. 

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