LAS VEGAS (AP) - Oscar De La Hoya is offering himself as the ultimate prize to get his fellow 154-pounders together to fight each other.

De La Hoya said Friday he wants to match his top challengers in a three-fight tournament, with the winner emerging to fight him next fall.

The only catch is that De La Hoya will profit from the fights himself - with his recently formed Golden Boy Promotions putting on the bouts.

"It's a good incentive for these fighters," De La Hoya said. "If they want to fight me, they have to go through the tournament."

De La Hoya, who established himself as the top junior middleweight when he stopped Fernando Vargas Sept. 14 in their unification fight, said he'll be inviting Vargas, Winky Wright, Javier Castillejo, Daniel Santos and welterweights Shane Mosley and Vernon Forrest to participate in the tournament.


Four fighters will be picked, and the two winners of the first round of fights will meet for the right to fight De La Hoya.

"In order to fight me, they're going to have to beat the best," De La Hoya said. "It will be great publicity for everybody."

De La Hoya said the plans are preliminary, though he hopes HBO will sign up to help him get the other fighters to participate. But he made it clear that his win over Vargas gives him the right to sift through his challengers.

"I'm kind of in the driver's seat right now," De La Hoya said.

De La Hoya acknowledged, however, that his plans would change if Felix Trinidad came out of retirement and gave him the rematch he desperately wants. Trinidad beat De La Hoya by decision in a fight where De La Hoya was roundly criticized for running and giving away the final three rounds.

"I'm hoping he makes himself available," said De La Hoya. "I would love to fight him again."

De La Hoya's proposed tournament is only part of his plans for his promotion company, which he started in December with an eye toward making him a prominent promoter by the time his boxing career is over.

He just finished playing golf Friday with fellow boxer-turned-promoter Sugar Ray Leonard before turning his attention, in a phone interview, to his promotional plans.

They include a monthly series that HBO will televise called "Oscar De La Hoya Presents Boxeo De Oro," which will kick off Jan. 16 with a card at the venerable Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles.

"It's going to be a chance to showcase young Hispanic and Latin fighters," De La Hoya said. "It will be a monthly series with fights from Texas, Miami, New York and other places."

De La Hoya, who said he took $110 from Leonard on the golf course, said he sees the day when he and his fellow former Olympic gold medalist will be two of the major forces in the sport.

"We're the next generation of promoters," he said. "Bob Arum and Don King are doing a great job and have years left, but the next generation is me and Sugar Ray."

That doesn't mean that De La Hoya is done as a fighter. But he plans to stretch out his remaining fights, and would go a year between fights if his current plans pan out.

"These last fights of my career are defining moments," De La Hoya said. "I just want to fight the right fights, big fights, and slowly but surely think of retirement. I want to ride the wave with every fight and take advantage of the publicity from beating Vargas."

De La Hoya

AzureStar said:

No eye dont care 4 him either, he thinks he's such a pretty boy but the boy has another thing coming.

DLH doesn't want any part of Vernon Forrest... Sugar Shane whipped DLH's ass and Forrest beat the shit out of Shane TWICE in a row...

It will be fun to see though.