Oscar De La Hoya hasn’t competed inside a boxing ring in over a decade.
But that doesn’t mean the 47-year-old founder of Golden Boy Promotions lacks confidence in his skills.
Despite not lacing up the gloves since being stopped in eight rounds by Manny Pacquiao in 2008, De La Hoya believes that he has what it takes to take out a certain mixed martial artist superstar who has tried his hand at the sweet science before.
“Two rounds,” De La Hoya responded when asked about a potential boxing match with Conor McGregor on CBS Sports’ State of Combat podcast. “Oh come on, brother. Two rounds. One thing about me is I went for the kill, always. Look, Conor McGregor — I love him in the Octagon, I respect him, I watch him all the time. But the boxing ring is a whole different story, it's a whole different story.”
The former two-division UFC champion caught wind of De La Hoya’s prediction and wasted little time responding.
Prior to being stopped by Pacquiao, De La Hoya was one of the biggest stars in boxing who won world championships in six different weight classes during his run from 1992 to 2008. After the loss, De La Hoya became a full-time promoter with Golden Boy Promotions, which boasts a roster of fighters that currently includes Canelo Alvarez and Ryan Garcia.
McGregor tried his hand at boxing once before, coming up short in a megafight with Floyd Mayweather in August 2017. Mayweather eventually stopped McGregor in the 10th round, but that hasn’t stopped the Irishman from exploring options for another go in the world of boxing.
McGregor is currently in pursuit to reclaim the UFC lightweight title after being submitted in the fourth round against current champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in October 2018. McGregor bounced back from the loss to score a knockout against Donald Cerrone at UFC 246 in January but has yet to be scheduled for his next fight.