Arum describes De la Hoya appearance as 'vulnerable'

MANILA, Philippines - Bob Arum was one of the persons responsible for shaping Oscar de la Hoya's rise to stardom. On Friday, Arum just simply called his aging former associate out of shape. Or at least, that's how de la Hoya looked. "Now whether that means anything or whether I'm seeing things that I'm not really seeing, I don't know. But he looks drawn," Arum, one of the sport's most influentical personalities, said. Pacquiao tipped the scales much lower than expected, coming in at 142lbs during the official weigh-in at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. De la Hoya was also well within the welterweight (147lb) limit after he registered at 145lbs. Arum promoted de la Hoya early in his career before de la Hoya decided to bolt Arum's Top Rank Inc. and later on put up his own Golden Boy Promotions. Arum currently owns the promotional rights of Manny Pacquiao By going down from as high as 160 pounds to meet the 147-pound limit, the effect would eventually take its toll on de la Hoya, Arum said. De la Hoya has not fought as a welterweight since 2001. "When a guy is like that, he's really vulnerable to body punches because he's gonna put on weight and its gonna be heavy in the side and it's gonna get hurt. This is when Manny could really chew him up," Arum said. Arum added that de la Hoya has always been vulnerable to body punches, as was the case in his fight with former undisputed champion Bernard Hopkins and Tito Trinidad. He lost to both fighters. "If Oscar comes in over 155 pounds, he's gonna be dead because it's too much. That's why Manny can't go in more than 148 or 149 pounds," he said, referring to Pacquiao's advantage in speed if Pacquiao maintains a lighter weight. - GMANews.TV