De Loya taunts ‘boring’ Mayweather in farewell letter

Boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya has mocked Floyd Mayweather in a farewell letter that describes the unbeaten fighter as ‘boring’ and ‘afraid’. The letter from De La Hoya will appear in the December issue of Playboy magazine and heavily criticises Mayweather, who announced his retirement earlier this year.

“Dear Floyd,” the letter begins. “You did it. You made it to the 49ñ0 mark, a milestone that you like to say only the great Rocky Marciano reached but that was actually achieved by others, including my idol Julio CÈsar Ch·vez ñ but who’s counting? And now you’re retiring. Again.

“This time you say it’s for real. You’re serious about hanging up the gloves. On to bigger and better things. So I’m writing to you today to wish you a fond farewell.

“Truth be told, I’m not unhappy to see you retire. Neither are a lot of boxing fans. Scratch that. MOST boxing fans. Why? Because the fight game will be a better one without you in it.”

De La Hoya continues to ridicule Mayweather throughout the letter, calling him ‘boring’ before blasting his performance in his final bout – a 12-round decision against Andre Berto.

“How to describe it,” De La Hoya wrote. “A bust? A disaster? A snooze fest? An affair so one-sided that on one judge’s card Berto didn’t win a single round? Everyone in boxing knew Berto didn’t have a chance.

“I think more people watched Family Guy reruns that night than tuned in to that pay-per-view bout. But I didn’t mind shelling out $75 for the HD broadcast.

“In fact it’s been a great investment. When my kids have trouble falling asleep, I don’t have to read to them anymore. I just play them your Berto fight. They don’t make it past round three.”

De La Hoya, who considered a return to the ring earlier this year before deciding against it, goes on to accuse Mayweather of being ‘afraid of taking risks’, highlighting his failure to fight Manny Pacquiao until their May meeting in Las Vegas.

He added: “Another reason boxing is better off without you: you were afraid. Afraid of taking chances. Afraid of risk.

“A perfect example is your greatest ‘triumph,’ the long-awaited record-breaking fight between you and Manny Pacquiao. Nearly 4.5m buys! More than $400 million in revenue! Headlines worldwide! How can that be bad for boxing? Because you lied.

“You promised action and entertainment and a battle for the ages, and you delivered none of the above. The problem is, that’s precisely how you want it. You should have fought Pacquiao five years ago, not five months ago. That, however, would have been too dangerous. Too risky.”

De La Hoya went on to praise many of today’s top fighters, including Gennady Golovkin, Roman Gonzalez and Sergey Kovalev, along with rising stars Terence Crawford, Vasyl Lomachenko and Keith Thurman.

“You’re moving on to a new phase of life now, a second act – but I’m wondering what you’re going to do?” wrote De La Hoya.

“Maybe you’ll put your true skills to work and open a used-car dealership or run a circus. Or maybe you’ll wind up back on ‘Dancing With the Stars’. It’s a job that’s safe, pays well and lets you run around on stage. Something you’ve been doing for most of your career.”