Golden Boy promoter Oscar De La Hoya liked what he saw of last Saturday’s Queensberry vs. Matchroom ‘5 vs. 5’ tournament in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
De La Hoya blames Matchroom boss Eddie Hearn’s team’s 5-0 loss due to a five-fighter roster lacking the talent to beat Frank Warren’s Queensberry team.
Hearn has excellent fighters in stable, but the ones that he put on this team’s competitors in the 5 vs. 5 tourney were 2nd stringers and NOT the best guys in his stable. If Hearn put his best guys on the squad, he would have had an all star team and would have wiped out Queensberry.
I think the problem is that it would cost too much money for Hearn to put these Matchroom fighters on a 5 vs. 5 team:
– Anthony Joshua
– Devin Haney
– Jaron Ennis
– Diego Pacheco
– Subriel Matias
“The 5 against 5 is a great concept. I love it.
“We saw that 5 against 5. I knew it was going to be a shutout. The 5 against 5 is a great concept. I love it,” said promoter Oscar De La Hoya on social media, reacting to last Saturday night’s Queensberry vs. Matchroom ‘5 vs. 5’ tourney in Riyadh.
“The only issue I had was Eddie Hearn didn’t have a deep enough roster to go up against Frank Warren, who has been in the business forever. Obviously, it goes to show you the talent pool that Eddie Hearn has. That’s why he went 0-5, but the concept is great. I love it.”
Hearn has great fighters, but they’re too expensive to put them on a 5 vs. 5 card. That’s why Hearn’s team was shut out. It was clear going into the match that most of his fighters would lose, but it was surprising that they all lost.
“I can go up against Al Haymon. I can go up against Frank Warren. He promotes heavyweights. I’m all for it. I love the concept,” said De La Hoya.
I don’t think it’s realistic for a 5 vs 5 happening in the U.S involving Golden Boy and Top Rank. While De La Hoya would do it, I don’t see Top Rank wanting any part of that.
De La Hoya Commends Turki Alalshikh for Promoting Boxing
Keep doing what you’re doing, Turki. We love it. The boxing fans really respect that. You’re spending a lot of money giving us the fights that we want to see,” said De La Hoya.
“I commend him. I respect him for being a huge fan of boxing. He wants to put up the fights that aren’t possible but the fights that can’t be made. He’s backed by a lot of money, obviously. I think we should commend him. I think we should applaud him.
“He wants to make the big fights. He’s a huge fan. So why not? I’m all for it. The fight card he’s doing on August 3rd in LA, we have Vergil on the card. Obviously, Tim Tszyu is off the card, but we’re working on an exciting replacement. Turki, you’re doing a great job. Keep doing what you’re doing.
“I respect what he’s doing with Riyadh, promoting with Riyadh, and the season. We love boxing. We want the best fights. Being an ex-fighter myself, I want to see the best. Turki is not a promoter. He’s not a manager. He just loves boxing, and he’s talking to every promoter out there and trying to make the best fights happen. So congratulations,s Turki. I applaud you,” said De La Hoya.
Read the full article here
