Oscar De La Hoya responds to Floyd Mayweather's rematch challenge

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Thursday, June 18, 2015

Oscar De La Hoya isn't stepping back into the ring, even if it's for a potential rematch against Floyd Mayweather.

Hours after pound-for-pound king Mayweather said he'd put his 48-0 record on the line against longtime nemesis De La Hoya, the Golden Boy took to social media to say he is happily retired.

"I'm happy, I'm content, I'm never coming back," De La Hoya said in an Instagram post titled "Split Decision."

"I'm going to continue growing Golden Boy [Promotions]."

De La Hoya, 42, hasn't fought since a December 2008 loss to Manny Pacquiao, officially retiring four months later. But in a radio interview earlier this month, he admitted he constantly thinks about returning to the ring, saying: "There's not one day that passes by that I [don't] think about making a comeback."

And if he did return? "If I did make a comeback, I'd want to fight the very best," he said.

Prompted by those words, Mayweather decided to call out De La Hoya.

"Oscar ... He's coming back," Mayweather said in an interview posted by BlackSportsOnline on Wednesday. "I mean if he wants to, we can rock 'n' roll in the same gym. ... He said he wanted a rematch, so if Oscar wants it, he can get it."

Mayweather and De La Hoya fought just once, in May 2007, with Mayweather earning a split-decision win for the WBC 154-pound title.

"Our first fight had a rematch clause," De La Hoya said in the Instagram post. "It had to take place within the year. He retired in a year and one day."

There's been no love lost between the camps.

After Mayweather beat Pacquiao in a May megafight critiqued by many for its lack of action, De La Hoya tweeted: "Call me old school but I like the fans getting their money's worth by watching an action packed fight."

De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions, meanwhile, announced in May that it has filed a federal lawsuit seeking $300 million against Al Haymon, who manages Mayweather. The suit alleges Haymon and his various business entities, among others, have repeatedly violated antitrust laws and the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act.

Mayweather, 38, has one fight remaining on his Showtime contract and has stated several times that he intends to retire after a final fight in September.