Allison Kugel: Because it was in the film, I want to ask you about some of the sexual assault lawsuits that came your way. It doesn’t seem to jive with the person that I’m looking at right now. Was it not being queued into someone else’s body language, or how they are feeling, like their nonverbal cues? Because you were living so high, were you just not thinking about the other person’s responses to your actions, per se, even though it wasn’t your intention to assault anyone? What was going on there?
Oscar De La Hoya: No. First of all, I would never hurt a fly. That is just who I am, but I think that I put myself in situations where I was vulnerable. For instance, you have this kid. Young, money, he’s outgoing, this and that. I put myself in situations where people thought, “Shit, I could take advantage of this kid.” I’m not that person. It is just not me, but if you put yourself in that situation, someone is bound to take advantage of you. Someone is bound to take advantage of that situation, of that kid who is naïve and young, who has money, and that is exactly what happened. I’ve never laid my hands on anybody. I would never, ever do that. I would never mistreat anyone. It is just not in my nature or how I grew up. I didn’t see that in my household. My father and mother had a distant relationship, but it was never abusive. It was never physical, so I never grew up with that. On the contrary, it’s like all I needed was love. All I needed was a hug, so all of these accusations, or whatever, is all they were. Accusations.
Allison Kugel: Are you saying you were targeted, financially?
Oscar De La Hoya: That was the goal, I would assume. I would assume that was the goal, but there is a reason why things were dropped, or things were dropped by the system. There are reasons for that. Anyone who knows me knows that would never, ever be me.
Allison Kugel: Do you pray? And, if so, who or what do you pray to?
Oscar De La Hoya: I used to pray a lot. I still believe in my God as my higher power, but now that I’ve been in this state of mind for the past few years, at peace with myself and I’ve done all the work and continue to do the work, I don’t find myself praying like I used to pray. Now, I reassure myself, “Today is going to be a great day! You are a good person. You work hard. Go just be a good guy.” There really isn’t that much praying like before. Before, when I was lost, it was like, “Please, please I need your help!” and nothing happened. Now, I wake up every single morning and my girlfriend knows that I take my time for myself when I wake up. I say to myself, “Okay, just be you.” That has been working for me. The balance in my life now has been incredible.
Allison Kugel: I know you’ve mastered boxing, but beyond that, what have you mastered in your life, and what remains a work in progress?
Oscar De La Hoya: I think life is a big old work in progress. I play a lot of golf, and in golf, you can never master the game. It’s impossible. If you shoot a low score, you can always shoot lower. Even Tiger Woods could never master the game. You can always get better. You can always shoot a better score, and I think life is like that. Even if you are on top of the mountain, there is always something you can work on. Life is all about growing, learning, and becoming better and good with yourself. I’m always searching to find peace, every single day.
Allison Kugel: Any final words of wisdom to share?
Oscar De La Hoya: I’m very fortunate to be alive because it could have ended quickly and easily at any point in my life. My number one rule that people should consider is to put yourself first. I think back to when I was pleasing everyone else, and how kids today want to please their schoolmates. They have the pressure of being cool. Make yourself happy first, and then everything else will unfold and everything else will be manageable and a bit easier to handle. You have to really sit down with yourself and ask yourself some tough questions. It’s all about communication.
Oscar De La Hoya’s two-part documentary film, The Golden Boy, can be watched on HBO and streaming on MAX. Image courtesy of HBO and MAX.
Watch or listen to the extended Oscar De La Hoya interview on the Allison Interviews Podcast at Apple, Spotify, or on YouTube.
