Oscar’s Lawyer Urges Canelo to Refrain from Defamation

In a letter sent to the team of undisputed world champion Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, the lawyer of former world champion and Golden Boy Promotions head Oscar De La Hoya demanded an end to defamation against his client and warned of legal consequences.

"As you know, during yesterday's press conference, your client, Canelo Alvarez, falsely accused my client, Oscar De La Hoya, of stealing from fighters. He repeated this outrageous lie several times in both English and Spanish, and now it has been shared by millions worldwide.

You must understand the legal implications of such blatantly false accusations. Accusing someone of a crime is defamation in itself. Moreover, false statements specifically intended to harm someone's business are also defamatory. Canelo did both of these things yesterday. He falsely accused Oscar of a crime with specific intent. He even allegedly warned other fighters not to do business with Oscar or Golden Boy. Apparently, Canelo intentionally defamed Oscar and Golden Boy.

Canelo's statements were also made with malice. It is clear that Canelo harbors great dislike and ill-will towards Oscar, repeatedly calling him a "f*ing ahole" and even stooping to use degrading stereotypes about gay people to try and insult Oscar.

But Canelo also knows that neither Oscar nor Golden Boy have ever stolen from him or anyone else. In fact, Golden Boy paid Canelo every penny he was entitled to receive from his fights with Golden Boy. And Canelo knows this. Indeed, Canelo knows that Oscar and Golden Boy set Canelo's current market value through the groundbreaking deals they created for him. While Canelo may be frustrated that his career has plateaued since leaving Golden Boy, this frustration does not justify such outrageous and defamatory statements and absurd accusations against Oscar and Golden Boy. We also demand that Canelo immediately retract his defamatory accusations that Oscar stole from fighters.

Oscar and Golden Boy reserve the right to sue Canelo for damages caused by these defamatory accusations, including punitive damages intended to teach Canelo a lesson," the letter said.

Recall that at the final press conference before the Canelo-Munguia fight, a conflict arose between Oscar and Saul. De La Hoya demanded respect for his name, to which Alvarez claimed that Oscar was stealing from his fighters.