Oscar De La Hoya vs Alexis Arguello @135

We'll never know but i think the Pryor that fought Arguello that night would soak them up singularly. It reflects his chin more so than any perceived lack of power Arguello's way imo. Pryor took some insane shots.

Good to see Oscar getting some limelight. He was a helluva fighter.

 

I agree it reflects his chin more than anything else.

 

Oscar for me, but a great fight. I like Alexis better, but he's just too robotic to beat a prime athletic Oscar at this weight.

 

I think Oscar could be called a great fighter in a H2H sense @ the lighter weights, He carried lethal power. Speed, athleticism, and strength for Oscar...Experience, timing, and patience...yes, patience for Arguello.
If Alexis has 15 rounds to work with I think he stops Oscar to the body in the late rounds.

 

Hugh McIlvanney has a piece on Oscar written in 1995 and he compares Oscar's punching style to Arguello's. He wrote that Oscar placed punches on his targets. Alexis, he continued, used the ring as a canvas and his arms as paintbrushes and painted his punches onto opponents.

I 'lent' my copy of this to someone and don't have it to hand but years on that chapter stays with me. So does every other essay in it. Along with AJ Liebling's 'Sweet Science' and Donald McRae's 'Dark Trade', it's the best book I have read on the sport. Liebling's is a dream read for fans of the 50s. It's such beautiful prose. it doesn't matter what he is writing but he does shed a lot of insight into old training regimes, pre and post fight rituals and fighters' psyches. Unbelievably brilliant stuff. And McIlvanney's work is right up there. I couldn't recommend it highly enough.

Anyway. Against Tito and Quartey, Oscar showed he could box and stay with bangers of similar height to Alexis and his athleticism at 135 was way ahead of Arguello's. But lightweight was only two years into his pro career whereas Alexis was already well seasoned by the time he reached 135lbs. That's the difference for me and. while de la Hoya has all the physical tools, he just wasn't quite at Arguello's level when he was a lightweight. AA on points or late stoppage with Oscar on his feet and defiant. And possibly ahead, a Hearns-Leonard 1 for the lightweights.

 

I don't think that's totally fair to Oscar. He had nine title fights between 130 and 135, granted the WBO didn't carry much weight back then although Bredahl was pretty good, and finished three full years there before moving up to 140. That's more top experience than most champions get especially considering the depth of his am career.

I see similarities between Arguello and Hernandez, Chavez, and Trinidad. Oscar excelled against all of them in my book. I'd say Trinidad would likely pose a tougher threat to a fighter moving up from 130 than Arguello at 135.

 

This content is protected

 

I think this would be a hell of a fight. l too think Oscar is under rated (l'd pick a prime Oscar to beat a prime Mayweather) but this is a tough call. l think he'd be ahead one or two rounds going into the championship rounds but would he have the stamina to win a couple more rounds? Don't know.

PS for this fight l'm ignoring who was more experienced and just assuming they were both in their primes at that weight.

 

I watched this fight again as my tribute to Pryor's departure and it had me wondering who could cracking that chin of his too. In terms of power between Arguello and Oscar l think they are in the same ball park. Oscar went to the body more and l think threw combinations more often.

 

He shook off missiles as if they were a jab.

 

Sorry noneck. I am misquoting Hugh McIlvanney. When he said he placed punches, it was testimony to his accuracy rather than meaning any lack of power. Treat yourself to the book and read what I should have put. High rated Oscar very highly, and rightly so. One of the 90s top ten for me and that's saying something.

 

You don't think Oscar could have taken a swig from the master bottle ?

 

Good points.

I always felt like Arguello at 135 on this forum is credited a little too much -- his ideal weight and prime were at 130. He performed well at 135 but didn't have the same physical advantages: he wasn't the bigger guy quite often (although still usually the tallest) and wasn't as powerful, strong or imposing.

Technique-wise, he was a master, but this is not the best Arguello and I think a young, explosive Oscar is too much for him at this weight -- ODLH probably gets a flash knockdown, lands some flurries to take otherwise close rounds and cruises to a somewhat competitive UD.

 

We'll never know the contents of that bottle I fear.

 

It would be a helluva match. Oscar's height and reach advantages in early divisions are oft forgotten due to his later accomplishments higher inthe weight imo. These come into calculations as Arguello often had sizable advantages here.