Boxing News Boxing News
© Tom Hogan
Light middleweight Oscar De La Hoya returned to the ring for the first time since losing to Floyd Mayweather Jr a year ago and posted a wide points decision over the much smaller Steve Forbes last night at the Home Depot Arena in Carson, CA.
Although he swept the scorecards by margins of 120-108 and 119-109 (twice), the multi-weight former world champion didn’t have things all his way against ex-IBF Super Featherweight Champion Forbes.
The underdog used his advantage in quickness to hit De La Hoya many times and had little trouble getting off quick combinations on the inside before darting back out, but the lack of punching power hindered the efforts of the Forbes.
The superb jab and sheer size advantage of De La Hoya also made things difficult for Forbes, who was caught coming in repeatedly by the perfectly timed left hook capabilities of “The Golden Boy”.
Neither man was down or even really hurt in the contest and the bout ended after a spirited 12th round from both fighters.
Aside from the 2006 punchout of Ricardo Mayorga, it was De La Hoya’s, 39-5 (30), best performance in five years while Forbes, 33-6 (9), certainly showed a very good chin and giant heart in this competitive loss.
