SEATTLE - Former world champion Oscar de La Hoya and Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez continue to take jabs at each other. This time around, the "Golden Boy" told BoxingScene that the current super middleweight champion is on the decline and getting old, arguing that his fight against Jaime Munguia on May 4 could prove to be the end of Canelo's reign as the face of boxing.
"This is the perfect moment for Jaime Munguía. He's young, unbeaten, he is Mexican, has a good chin...on the other side, Canelo is a great fighter, no question about it, but he is old," De La Hoya said.
De La Hoya and Álvarez worked together for more than a decade, but their relationship ended in 2020, when Canelo was released from his contract with Golden Boy Promotions after the Mexican champion filed a lawsuit citing a breach of contract on an 11-fight, $365 million deal signed in 2018.
Ever since, the relationship between them has soured, and both individuals haven't stopped taking shots at each other.
Days before these comments about, De La Hoya also made a comparison between both fighters, saying that Canelo is like an "old Ferrari."
"When Canelo was Munguia's age, he was a dangerous fighter. He still is, but it's like a new Ferrari versus a classic Ferrari. You can't push the classic Ferrari to the limit anymore," said De La Hoya.
Saúl Álvarez hasn't taken De La Hoya's comments lightly. In an interview with Fight Hub TV, Canelo said he is not interested on having a friendly relationship with his former promoter. "I'm fine where I am. I have nothing to do with him and I wish him all the best and that's it, but I don't want him in my life, I don't want him near me, I don't need those vibes in my life," Canelo said.
De La Hoya's, on his end, said that if both fighters were to square up in a hypothetical fight in their primes, it would be a "walk in the park" for him.
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times En Español's YouTube channel, Canelo responded saying "I think it's the stupidest thing I've ever seen in my life, and that's what Oscar is." "Oscar relies on nothing more than saying stupid things, and that's why people pay attention to him. But in his company, he does nothing more than say stupid things. That's all he does. That's all he knows how to do," Canelo added.
With both figures keep on adding fuel to the fire, the fight on May 4 in Las Vegas is projected to be one of the most interesting bouts of the last few years thanks to the feud between the two outside of the ring. Canelo (60-2-2, 39 KOs) will put his undisputed super middleweight titles on the line against Jaime Munguía (43-0, 34 KOs) on May 4 in Las Vegas.
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