Oscar De La Hoya Opens Up On Richard Schaefer Rift

Oscar De Hoya, president of Golden Boy Promotions, took questions in the media center at the MGM at 4 PM, while undercard fights for “The Moment” promotion were unfolding in the ring in the arena.

Strange timing, you might think…unless you’ve been following the nearly soap opera style back and forth between De La Hoya and Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer in recent weeks…and then it makes perfect sense.

Oscar has been a pied piper of peace, talking about how he’d like see warring parties among the Cold War crew get along, or at least suspend clashing of heads, long enough to make some of the fights which the Cold War is keeping from getting made. Mayweather-Pacquiao, Kovalev-Stevenson, Golovkin-Quillin, and a few others.

He’d met with ex promoter, then bitter enemy, now fr-enemy, Bob Arum, for two hours a couple days ago, plotting peace and mega-fights. But Schaefer has made it clear he wants no part of doing co-promoting with Arum, who has gone nuclear several times on Floyd Mayweather, and Golden Boy, and especially Schaefer. Schaefer hasn’t shrunk from countering, and isn’t showing signs of wanting to capitulate to Oscar. He’s so much as dared Oscar to fire him, and is seemingly secure that he could do what he does out from under the Golden Boy umbrella.

On Saturday, with some expecting a nuclear assault, or maybe a parachute drop-in from Bob Arum, to announce the formation of Golden Rank Promotions, Oscar made it clear that he’d prefer peace. Let’s leave the lawyers out of it, and let me and Schaefer sit down, and hash things out, he said. Will that be possible? He’s not sure. But he said he’d go to the arena, and sit next to the ex banker, and maybe even hug him.

He’s not looking to fire Schaefer he made clear…but he also made clear that he brought Richard to the party, and he could do it again, find someone to fill a certain role.

“The way I did that, I can do it again,” the ex fighter said, making clear to mention that Richard came from the banking world, and he brought him to this party.

Oscar took about 15 questions from media, and said that Schaefer learned the game from him. He also said his meeting with Arum was done to make peace, bury the hatchet, and he’s hopeful that will be good for the sport as a whole.

Oscar sent notice that he’s back, he’s strong, and he wants ample say in Golden Boy business. Yes, he said, he was down and out, but he’s back in the ring for another swing, and we shouldn’t call it a comeback. “I have my vision, I have my plans, nobody is going to stop me from that,” he stated. “I’m not running away any more. The fans, they want to see great fights.”

Oscar didn’t delve deeply into discrepancies, such as the did he or didn’t he on Richard’s contract extension to 2018. He said, again, that he desires to sit down with Schaefer, and smooth things out. He can’t predict whether the relationship can be rebuilt, though. “But I don’t want him to leave,” he reiterated.

The name of the maestro behind the scenes, Al Haymon, did come up. Oscar said he was surprised to learn so many fighters are signed to Haymon, and fight on Golden Boy cards, but aren’t signed to Golden Boy.

All in all, this was a peace play, with undertones of resolve, of fighting spirit, present to make clear that nobody should write off The Golden Boy, and assume because he’s had personal problems, he can’t get grand things done, in the business ring.

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