De La Hoya vows he has a fight in future

But it might not happen for the 33-year-old fighter until May 2007.
By TIM DAHLBERG
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Oscar De La Hoya isn't going away -- yet.
Boxing's biggest star said Wednesday he will not fight again this year, but strongly suggested he will have one more fight next May against unbeaten Floyd Mayweather Jr.
"At this point I'm leaning toward not retiring," De La Hoya said. "I do want to fight. This is what I love."
De La Hoya was up against a deadline to announce his future plans if he wanted to make a Sept. 16 date for a lucrative fight against Mayweather that could be the richest non-heavyweight fight in history.
The 33-year-old, coming off an impressive knockout last month of Ricardo Mayorga, said he needed more time to decide whether to go through with one more fight to end his career or simply retire now.
"It was just too much for me, it was overwhelming," De La Hoya said. "That's why I postponed my final decision."
Mayweather
If he does fight, De La Hoya said it would be only one bout, and only against Mayweather. The fight would likely happen next May.
"When and if I decide to have my next fight it will be Floyd Mayweather Jr.," De La Hoya said. "That's the only name I can come up with that will satisfy me to train for three months and prepare myself. It's the only name out there for me."
De La Hoya complained of injuries after the Mayorga bout, and said he might have a rotator cuff problem. But he said injuries would not be a factor when he finally makes his decision.
"I'm only going to retire once, and I felt too much pressure to make the decision now," De La Hoya said. "I'm not going to fall into that trap."
Biggest draw
De La Hoya, the 1992 Olympic gold medalist who has won titles in five weight classes, is the biggest draw in boxing, and it showed when he came back after 20 months absence to beat Mayorga in a fight that had strong pay-per-view sales and earned him some $20 million.
A fight against Mayweather could make De La Hoya $40 million, but he said the money wouldn't be a factor. De La Hoya runs a promotion company, owns an office building in Los Angeles and has a number of varied business interests.
Beating Mayweather and staking his claim to being the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world would. Mayweather, who would move from 147 to 154 for the fight, is generally considered the best pound-for-pound now.
"I realize Mayweather can beat me, but the thing is I realize I can beat him," De La Hoya said. "I still feel this body has some gas left in it."
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