De La Hoya Calls Floyd Schofield His Sugar Ray Leonard Ahead of Bahdi Title Fight

Oscar De La Hoya isn't throwing out small names. The 11-time world champion has compared his fighter Floyd Schofield to Sugar Ray Leonard — one of the greatest pound-for-pound boxers who ever lived — ahead of Schofield's clash with Lucas Bahdi for the vacant WBA lightweight title this Saturday in Chicago. Both men walk in unbeaten: Schofield at 19-0 (13 KO), Bahdi at 20-0 (15 KO).

Speaking to Fight Hub TV, De La Hoya said what links Schofield to Leonard is the will to win — the mentality to beat an opponent at any cost. That's a heavy mantle. Leonard won titles across five divisions and remains the only member of boxing's fabled 'Four Kings' to hold wins over all three rivals: Thomas Hearns, Roberto Durán and Marvin Hagler.

The Case For Schofield

De La Hoya's praise isn't just hype. 'Kid Austin' is coming off a first-round knockout of Tevin Farmer, the kind of statement finish that moves a fighter up the rankings fast — he currently sits at #7 at 135. At 24, he has the age and the ceiling to chase the multi-division legacy De La Hoya keeps invoking.

Don't Sleep On Bahdi

The promoter was careful not to dismiss the other side. He credited Bahdi's deep amateur background and relentless work ethic, while suggesting the Canadian hasn't shared a ring with anyone quite like Schofield. Bahdi, ranked #10, edged Roger Gutiérrez on the cards last time out — proof he can grind through 12 hard rounds when the knockout doesn't come.

Win and move to 20-0, and Schofield's path opens up quickly. The lightweight division is stacked with young unbeaten champions: William Zepeda holds a belt, and WBO king Abdullah Mason is 21-0 (18 KO) after stopping Albert Bell in the 12th. Unification talk would follow almost immediately.

The co-main keeps the night busy. Ricardo Sandoval, 27-2 (18 KO), defends his unified WBC and WBA flyweight titles against late-notice replacement Sergio Mendoza Cordova. Sandoval's last outing was a split-decision win over Kenshiro Teraji — the kind of razor-thin result that tells you he can live in deep water.

For now, the headline is the matchup and the comparison. De La Hoya has hitched his guy's name to an all-time great before a single bell has rung. Saturday tells us whether that was foresight or marketing.