BoxRec

How do you think this plays out?

oscar gets taken away in a body bag.

hearns murders him

Oscar grits his teeth and takes a split decision.

At this weight this is not a mismatch, so for both the zealot camps I'm warnin' ya. It's gonna be a long night.

Hearns outboxed SRL before being stopped late, he was a beautiful boxer-mover and I can't see him dropping a decision to De La Hoya. They both have more than enough power to knock each other out and Oscar has the better chin of the two. Personally I think Hearns by a clear decision, around 116-112 is the most likely outcome, but either by KO would be no surprise either. I think Hearns would win 8 out of 10 times.

De La Hoya could possibly win once if they fought 600 times .

Hearns. DLH was no Leonard.

This is a close fight for me and it could go either way.

Hearns comes out fast and takes the early rounds. I think Oscar takes the late rounds. Whoever takes the middle rounds wins.

It's not a fight I would bet on, as I'm not certain who takes it.

My pick is Hearns on points, but I wouldn't be surprised if Oscar won a close decision.

MEISINGER wrote:oscar gets taken away in a body bag.

hearns murders him

Agreed

dr_devious wrote:

MEISINGER wrote:oscar gets taken away in a body bag.

hearns murders him

Agreed

thanks
this is the first dream fight i can remember
where people are picking delahoya over an all time great

I just don't think there is a cavernous gulf between these two guys.

But Hearns did KO Duran in an early round...so it naturally follows that DLH would just evaporate before the bell even rang.

Saving Hearns the effort of the murder that someone predicted.

keithmoonhangover wrote:This is a close fight for me and it could go either way.

Hearns comes out fast and takes the early rounds. I think Oscar takes the late rounds. Whoever takes the middle rounds wins.

It's not a fight I would bet on, as I'm not certain who takes it.

My pick is Hearns on points, but I wouldn't be surprised if Oscar won a close decision.

Oscar De La Hoya was not in the great Hitman's class. I just cannot see which way DLH could win this fight. By KO or by UD I have to pick the Hitman.

elmersalsa wrote:

keithmoonhangover wrote:This is a close fight for me and it could go either way.

Hearns comes out fast and takes the early rounds. I think Oscar takes the late rounds. Whoever takes the middle rounds wins.

It's not a fight I would bet on, as I'm not certain who takes it.

My pick is Hearns on points, but I wouldn't be surprised if Oscar won a close decision.

Oscar De La Hoya was not in the great Hitman's class. I just cannot see which way DLH could win this fight. By KO or by UD I have to pick the Hitman.

i also can not see any way possible for delahoya to pull this off

BoxBuzz wrote:I just don't think there is a cavernous gulf between these two guys.

But Hearns did KO Duran in an early round...so it naturally follows that DLH would just evaporate before the bell even rang.

Saving Hearns the effort of the murder that someone predicted.

Perhaps there isn't a cavernous gap between the two in skills and technique, but you can't deny that Hearns has some major natural physical advantages - 2 1/2 inches in height, 5 inches in reach, considerably more punching power and handspeed that was at least the equal of Oscar's in his prime and probably faster. The only guy of De La Hoya's size who ever gave Hearns trouble was Leonard, and Hearns was only 5 minutes away from beating him. I don't think Oscar is in the same league as Leonard, or Hearns for that matter. To say that Hearns blows Oscar away isn't a certainly, but it's definitely a possibility.

Rover wrote:Hearns. DLH was no Leonard.

This.

I can't see De La Hoya lasting 5 rounds with Hearns. Tommy was bigger, faster, stronger, far more powerful and had a definite edge in skills and boxing ability. Oscar was too flat footed to stand any chance with Hearns, I'm not saying its a mismatch because it isn't but De La Hoya's style is made for Hearns.

Another highlight reel KO for the Hit Man.

Maybe Hearns toasts him.
But Hearns usually won fights on sheer athletic superiority. Name one fight where he used strategy or mental resources to win a fight.
As much as I didn't (and don't) like De La Hoya, he won most of his fights this way. Not so sure he doesn't out-think Hearns and find a way to win.

Dart340 wrote:Maybe Hearns toasts him.
But Hearns usually won fights on sheer athletic superiority. Name one fight where he used strategy or mental resources to win a fight.
As much as I didn't (and don't) like De La Hoya, he won most of his fights this way. Not so sure he doesn't out-think Hearns and find a way to win.

I agree. De La Hoya has a chance. There's is no way in the world Hearns just blows him away. Prime De La Hoya is too smart and too durable to get blown away.

Throw my vote in for Hearns.

Hearns wins, probably by decision unless Oscar wears down badly late as he was prone to do.
BTW, is this fight 12 or 15 rounds, an important consideration in determining if DLH survives the distance.
The tall DLH usually had physical advantages in his fights, but that wouldn't be true against the the 6'1"+ Hitman. Oscar would spend a lot of time figuring out how to reach Hearns and would fall behind on points.
But Oscar was no defensive slouch and it's unlikely he would leave the ring in a body bag. How many clean punches did another noted puncher, Tito Trinidad land against DLH? Not many.
Tommy's superior reach and frightening power would control the match, but it's unlikely Oscar would embarass himself.
Hearns wins 116-111 in a 12 round bout. Maybe scores a quick knockdown along the way. Possibly he gets a late KO in a 15-rounder, but it very likely goes the distance.

Hearns boxes DLH's ears off, puffs his eyes up with steady jabs and lands enough hard bodyshots to slow down Oscar quicker than usual. I could see Oscar winning a round or two, but it wouldn't matter...taking a big lead into the 8th or 9th round Hearns closes the show with a vicious right cross. If one doesn't do it, a series of them will, and by this point in the fight Hearns will be able to land them basically at will.

Hearns didn't have a long prime at welterweight. He fought a long list of has-beens, downslide fringe contenders, and journeymen before detonating Cuevas. After Cuevas, he looked fair at best against Primera, apathetic against Baez, and couldn't do much with Randy Shields before getting broken down against Leonard.

Exactly where is the empirical evidence that this body bag filling Hearns even exists at 147lbs?

My impression is that Leonard could've finished Hearns off much, much earlier in their fight if he hadn't been overly cautious. The moment he turned it on, Hearns came unglued like a Chinese Tuxedo in a rainstorm.

I'd think it is fair to assume De La Hoya would've done at least as well as Randy Shields.

jezzamundo wrote:Hearns outboxed SRL before being stopped late, he was a beautiful boxer-mover and I can't see him dropping a decision to De La Hoya. They both have more than enough power to knock each other out and Oscar has the better chin of the two. Personally I think Hearns by a clear decision, around 116-112 is the most likely outcome, but either by KO would be no surprise either. I think Hearns would win 8 out of 10 times.

This.
The most likely outcome IMO is a late stoppage for Tommy after a good fight. But Oscar definatley has the pop to shake him up

elmersalsa wrote:

keithmoonhangover wrote:This is a close fight for me and it could go either way.

Hearns comes out fast and takes the early rounds. I think Oscar takes the late rounds. Whoever takes the middle rounds wins.

It's not a fight I would bet on, as I'm not certain who takes it.

My pick is Hearns on points, but I wouldn't be surprised if Oscar won a close decision.

Oscar De La Hoya was not in the great Hitman's class. I just cannot see which way DLH could win this fight. By KO or by UD I have to pick the Hitman.

DLH wasn't and I think Hearns beats him, but DLH had an unreal left hook and if it connects on Tommy, things could get interesting.

elmersalsa wrote:

keithmoonhangover wrote:This is a close fight for me and it could go either way.

Hearns comes out fast and takes the early rounds. I think Oscar takes the late rounds. Whoever takes the middle rounds wins.

It's not a fight I would bet on, as I'm not certain who takes it.

My pick is Hearns on points, but I wouldn't be surprised if Oscar won a close decision.

Oscar De La Hoya was not in the great Hitman's class. I just cannot see which way DLH could win this fight. By KO or by UD I have to pick the Hitman.

It does't matter if he was in Hearn's class, it's about styles. If it was just about who is a better fighter, explain Hearns-Barkley.