Former World boxing champion Oscar De La Hoya says he is considering contesting for the U.S. presidency to add to his collection of titles.
“I am actually very serious and I strongly feel that if a Kanye West can do it and announce and maybe tease the world that he would maybe one day want to run for president, why not me,” the fighter-turned-promoter said in a video released by TMZ.
De La Hoya, who won gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, retired from professional boxing in 2009, but has remained heavily involved in the sport as a promoter for his company, ‘Golden Boy Promotions’.
According to him, “for decades, I have been encouraged to become more involved outside of the sport.
“I’ve literally, over the years, ever since I became a professional in boxing; had millions of people tell me, ‘Look, why don’t you represent? Why don’t you stand up and have a bigger voice?’ And obviously the biggest voice you can have is being president,” he said in the video.
De La Hoya, from East Los Angeles, said if his team brought him some encouraging statistics he would make it official and announce his run.
His comments should be taken with a grain of salt, however, as the former champion is in heavy promotional mode ahead of the middleweight championship fight his company is showcasing Saturday night in Las Vegas.
Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, De La Hoya’s fighter, will face Gennady “GGG” Golovkin on pay-per-view in a rematch of their controversial draw from last year.
De La Hoya did not immediately return Fox News’ request for comments Monday.
Born on February 4, 1973, De La Hoya has now become a successful boxing and mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter. In his hey days, between 1992 and 2008, he won multiple world titles in six different weight classes, including the lineal championship in three weight classes.
The different weight categories that De La Hoya ruled include Super featherweight; Lightweight; Light welterweight; Welterweight; Light middleweight; and Middleweight
Overall, he is ranked as the 11th best boxer of all time, pound for pound, by BoxRec and was nicknamed ‘The Golden Boy of boxing’ by the media when he represented the United States. – With agency reports
