Oscar De La Hoya appeared Ariel Helwani show Wednesday, less than 24 hours after the House of Representatives approved the Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act. The Golden Boy Promotions founder focused on the Ali Act amendment, expressed regret over the sale of Ring Magazine, confirmed his up-to-date deal with DAZN, outlined plans for Ryan Garcia’s next fight and set his sights on Dana White.
De La Hoya plans to testify in the Senate against Ali’s amendment bill
On Tuesday, the House voted to pass H.R. 4624, which TKO-backed legislation would create Unified Boxing Organizations to operate outside of the existing Ali Act framework. De La Hoya has been one of the bill’s most vocal critics and appeared concerned Wednesday.
“What’s extraordinary to me is that no one reports this, no one talks about it,” De La Hoya told Helwani. “I feel like I’m fighting this fight alone. They’re always sneaky. They had a hearing a few days ago where they handed it over. It was all under the radar, no one knew about it. Hopefully when I show up, I’m prepared, I talk to the Senate and hopefully I can convince them, this thing will derail.”
He said he has spoken to multiple senators and has been invited to Washington in the coming weeks to testify. The bill is currently in the Senate Commerce Committee, chaired by Ted Cruz, and needs 60 votes to clear the filibuster.
Critics, including De La Hoya, Bob Arum, Evander Holyfield and the WBC, say the bill would allow TKO to replicate the UFC’s closed-league boxing model. Supporters including Lonnie Ali, Mike Tyson and the Association of Boxing Commissions say it provides overdue safety standards. The two House members who voted yes, Bobby Scott and Ilhan Omar, continued to urge the Senate to strengthen antitrust protections before final passage.
I regret selling Ring magazine
De La Hoya made a sporadic admission about Ring Magazine, which he sold to Turki Alalshikh in overdue 2024 for $10 million after 17 years of ownership. He told Helwani he regretted selling it, claiming he believed he was giving it to someone who would protect its integrity, and admitted he was wrong.
He said that the Ring’s rankings had lost all credibility and that the championship belt, which had carried historic weight for a century, had effectively ended up in the trash. That’s a marked change from 2024, when De La Hoya told Forbes the publication was “in good hands.”
The problem is not up-to-date in the industry. The owner of Ring Magazine is currently in the same financial ecosystem as Zuffa Boxing, which TKO launched as a joint venture with Alalshikh-affiliated Sela. From the beginning, critics questioned whether editorial independence would survive such an arrangement.
Golden Boy is stuck on the DAZN extension
De La Hoya confirmed DAZN’s multi-year extension formally announced on Tuesday, acknowledging months of uncertainty during which players called to inquire about deadlines approaching. He called the deal a relief.
Thanks to the extension, Golden Boy is available on DAZN, where it has been present since 2018. With Top Rank, Matchroom and Queensberry also on the platform, DAZN now includes all major US promotions except Premier Boxing Champions. Golden Boy’s lineup includes WBC welterweight titleholder Ryan Garcia, unified cruiserweight champion Gilberto Ramirez and challengers Arnold Barboza Jr., William Zepeda and Floyd Schofield.
Garcia vs. Haney scheduled for July
De La Hoya said his goal is a Devin Haney rematch for Garcia, calling it the biggest fight available to both men. He pointed to a July schedule in Las Vegas, including either T-Mobile Arena or Allegiant Stadium.
Garcia dropped Haney three times en route to a majority decision in April 2024, but the result was overturned after a positive Ostarine test. Haney has since won the WBO welterweight title with a dominant win over Brian Norman Jr., while Garcia bounced back from a upset loss to Rolly Romero by stopping Mario Barrios from winning the WBC welterweight belt in February. Both camps have publicly stated they want the fight, although disagreements on the A side have slowed negotiations.
Dana White’s salvos
De La Hoya saved his most unfiltered comments for Dana White, questioning the Zuffa Boxing boss’s credibility on every level.
“He’s a Neanderthal. That’s all,” De La Hoya said. “What he’s saying… he’s saying so much. He’s talking bullshit. He’s not saying shit. He’s just talking. It’s crazy. If you really pay attention, he won’t say anything.”
De La Hoya also pushed back against White’s repeated public barbs about his real estate ventures, calling it a straightforward business decision that White doesn’t have the sophistication to understand. “If you knew business, you would understand, but I’m not going to explain it,” he said, referring to the downtown Los Angeles development. “I’m not going to explain it because Dana has a lot of shit.”
He then turned to White’s long-standing habit of bringing up decades-old underwear photos – a taunt that White has repeated for years. “20 years, 30 years ago. Just please stop it. That’s all you have,” De La Hoya said, calling White “Uncle Fester.” “He probably fucking looks at that painting and probably loves it. That’s why he talks about it so much.”
Personal hostility cuts both ways. White told reporters after Zuffa Boxing 03 last month that opposing him in boxing was “like hitting children.” But what separates this moment from mere trash talk is the legislative battle behind it. White’s TKO Group Holdings is the driving force behind the Ali amendment that De La Hoya is trying to kill in the Senate. Whether De La Hoya’s testimony carries more weight than TKO’s lobbying will determine whether his opposition becomes more than just color television.
