Oscar De La Hoya has singled out one man in particular as the hardest hitter he faced during his professional career.
‘The Golden Boy’ remains one of the most decorated fighters in boxing history, winning multiple world titles across six weight classes during his tenure.
The majority of De La Hoya’s success came during the late 1990s into the early 2000s where he produced legacy-defining wins over the likes of Arturo Gatti, Pernell Whitaker, Hector Camacho and Julio Cesar Chavez Sr.
He did suffer his fair share of defeats along the way however, with the sixth and final loss of his career coming in December of 2008 when Filipino great Manny Pacquiao proved to be too much for the six-weight world champion, stopping him in the 8th round of their Las Vegas clash.
Speaking to The Ring Magazine, De La Hoya spoke fondly of former rival Ike Quartey as he claims the former WBA welterweight champion was the biggest puncher he crossed paths with.
“His punches were like bricks; he hit me and it would sting me. Every punch he would hit me with, it would rattle me.”
De La Hoya and Quartey locked horns at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas back in 1999, with ‘The Golden Boy’ defeating the Ghanian great via split decision in a closely fought contest that could have gone either way.
Quartey challenged for the IBF super-welterweight title just over one year later but came unstuck against Fernando Vargas who defeated ‘Bazooka’ via unanimous decision in what would prove to be the final world title challenge of his career.
