De La Hoya Files Defamation Lawsuit Against Canelo Alvarez
Bitter and contemptuous describe the current feud between promoter Oscar De La Hoya and reigning super middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 KOs). With De La Hoya’s recent lawsuit against Alvarez, the situation has boiled over and gotten totally out of hand.
The latest dust-up started during a May 1 press event for Canelo’s May 4 title defense against former 154-pound champion Jaime Munguia (49-0, 34 KOs). Alvarez accused De La Hoya of stealing money from him. That accusation led to a heated exchange of words between the promoter and the undisputed champion.
Swearing he would not take such a claim lying down, an emboldened De La Hoya went to social media to announce that Golden Boy Promotions had filed a lawsuit against Alvarez for defamation.
FROM FRIENDS TO ENEMIES
At one time, Canelo and De La Hoya were tight like glue. Alvarez looked up to De La Hoya, viewing the former fighter as something of a role model. The head of Golden Boy Promotions viewed Alvarez as a protégé. That all changed in September 2020 when Alvarez sued Golden Boy for breach of contract. From that point, it’s been nothing but a series of name-calling and blaming one another for why things fell apart.
These most recent events do nothing more than serve as a distraction to Alvarez versus Munguia. De La Hoya has become more of the story than Munguia – the fighter he currently promotes.
Most in the boxing community have reacted to De La Hoya’s suit as window dressing and something to be taken seriously. In truth, the move seems largely petty. But it’s come to a point where enough is enough. At this point, all parties need to move on.
