At the height of his career, Floyd Mayweather was renowned for his exceptional elusiveness in the ring. Unlike most boxers, he endured remarkably little damage throughout his fights, with only a few notable exceptions. As he entered his ‘Money’ Mayweather era, his defensive prowess became even more pronounced. Mayweather retired in 2017 with an undefeated record of 50-0, but Oscar De La Hoya suggests that if circumstances had been different in 2007, the story might have been quite different today.

The duo went toe-to-toe in one of the biggest fights in recent history, with Mayweather coming out victorious via a split decision win. While some argued that Oscar was on his way out of the sport, Oscar himself believes he would have knocked Floyd Mayweather out had he had Floyd Mayweather Sr. in his corner. Interestingly, Oscar even claimed that Mayweather Sr.’s absence from his corner was a selfless act on his part.

Oscar De La Hoya reveals the key to Mayweather’s style

During a recent episode of the Club Shay Shay podcast, Shannon Sharpe brought up Floyd Mayweather Sr.’s absence from Oscar De La Hoya’s corner before the Floyd Mayweather Jr. fight. He asked De La Hoya whether he believed that having Mayweather Sr. in his corner for their fight might have changed the outcome. “Knock him out. [I would have] knock[ed] him out. I would knock him out,” Oscar responded without skipping a breath. 

As Oscar’s sheer confidence left Sharpe in disbelief, Oscar elaborated, “Absolutely, if I was one year younger and had Sr. in my corner, I would knock him out. Really.” When Sharpe probed Oscar further to confirm his confidence in Mayweather Sr’s abilities to get him closer to a win, Oscar seemed determined, stating, “Oh yeah, absolutely.”

He further added that, later in life, he had figured out how to counter Mayweather’s famous Philly Shell. “The key was, and the key is to that style, a jab. [It] opens up all the doors,” Oscar said, recollecting the action in the ring decades ago. However, failing to realize the same late, Oscar added, “When my jab failed me, it was over. I knew it in my heart, in my head. I knew it was over.” However, this begs the question: what was Oscar’s selfless act? 

Oscar didn’t want to create a crack between Floyd Mayweather and his father

During the same podcast, the entire conversation about knocking out Floyd, if he had help from Floyd Sr., reminded Oscar of a story from back then. As it turns out, he and his team were planning to have a rematch against Floyd, as per their contract. And Oscar wanted to hire Mayweather Sr. to train him this time around to exact vengeance for his loss. 

However, “He wanted too much money,” Oscar revealed. He explained that he would have had to pay an enormous amount of money to Mayweather Sr., so he didn’t go through with it. Even so, there was another reason, at least, according to Oscar. He said, “Aside from [money], morally, I think, I just thought it was wrong… I think, at the time, they were having an issue.”

It’s worth mentioning that Mayweather Sr. and his son have had a tumultuous relationship, including a public falling out in 2000. It led to Roger Mayweather taking over Jr.’s training once again after Sr. had come out of five and a half year prison sentence related to drug charges. Regardless, Oscar continued, “It happens in every family, so I said, ‘No, I can’t do this. I cannot do this to a family, who has been in the business for a very long time’.”

Could Oscar De La Hoya have knocked out Floyd Mayweather Jr. if Mayweather Sr. had been in his corner? It’s impossible to say for sure—we’ll never know. But was it a selfless act? That’s for you to decide. Share your thoughts on these claims in the comments below.