Is Oscar De La Hoya fighting again?

Former world boxing champion Oscar De La Hoya will be returning to the ring to fight former professional mixed martial artist Vitor Belfort.

The fight between Oscar De La Hoya and Belfort will take place on September 11 under the banner of Triller Fight Club.

The bout was originally being promoted as an exhibition fight. However, Oscar De La Hoya confirmed that the fight would go down as a professional fight.

Two legends collide 🥊 I’m making the most of this GOLDEN opportunity, count on it! 😤 LET’S GO 🚨 Duas lendas se chocam 🥊 Estou aproveitando ao máximo essa oportunidade DOURADA, conte com ela 😤 VAMOS 🚨#TrillerFightClub@triller@trillerfight@RyanKavanaugh@vaynersports pic.twitter.com/HbYs79lUfK

— Vitor Belfort (@vitorbelfort) June 17, 2021

Oscar De La Hoya explains why his fight against Belfort will be a professional bout

In the pre-fight press conference for the event, Oscar De La Hoya spoke at length about why the fight had changed from an exhibition bout to a professional bout. He said:

“This is not a game. You know, we don’t play boxing. We don’t play UFC. We don’t play MMA. I literally said, ‘Look, if we’re going to do this, let’s do it for reals’. Let’s not do this song and dance. Let’s not do these exhibitions, you know, that we’re tired of. This is the real thing. And, you know, the fact that Belfort feels great. I mean, look at him. I feel amazing. I feel, literally, better than ever. And the fact that we both agree that it’s gonna be a real fight; it’s gonna be a lot of fun. And I have no sh** to talk about Belfort whatsoever... I respect you, brother, like there’s no tomorrow. But I’ll tell you one thing – We’re gonna kick the sh** out of each other. That’s one thing for sure. And that’s what I’m actually looking forward to. Call me crazy, but I’m looking forward to it, you know. I miss that getting hit. For some strange reason, I miss getting hit. So, I mean, come September 11th, yeah, it’s going to be a lot of fun.”

Check out the full video courtesy of FightHype.com below:

Has Vitor Belfort ever competed as a professional boxer?

Vitor Belfort is a popular figure in the world of professional MMA and has a vast resume, having competed at the top tier in various promotions.

However, his experience inside the boxing ring sits in perfect contrast to that inside the MMA cage.

"vitor is wearing shoes so he will not be able to strike with the feet" - crazy times 😂Vitor Belfort makes short work of taking Wanderlei Silva apart in the first round. Almost 22 years ago to the day. pic.twitter.com/Ub8LMmQpvR

— Neil Butcher (@MMAassault1) October 20, 2020

Vitor Belfort has only one fought in one professional boxing bout. The fight took place in 2006 against Josemario Neves in Brazil. The fight ended in a one-minute KO in Belfort's favor.