LEGACY ON THE LINE DE LA HOYA WILL BATTLE HOPKINS FOR TITLE ... AS WELL AS A PLACE AMONG THE GREATEST BOXERS IN HISTORY.

Byline: Robert Morales Staff Writer

LAS VEGAS - Oscar De La Hoya has accomplished a lot during his 13-plus years as a professional boxer. He has won championships in a record six weight classes and become the sport's top attraction, unprecedented for a non-heavyweight.

Now 31, De La Hoya has victories over Rafael Ruelas, a past-his-prime Julio Cesar Chavez, Pernell Whitaker, Ike Quartey and Fernando Vargas. But he lost to Felix Trinidad Jr., and he dropped two fights to ``Sugar'' Shane Mosley.

Even if one wants to argue that De La Hoya beat Trinidad, and beat Mosley in their rematch, he officially lost. In other words, De La Hoya has lost arguably his three biggest fights.

Thus the question: Does De La Hoya need to beat undisputed middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins on Saturday at the MGM Grand to be considered a great fighter?

``Well, if he wants to have a legacy of true greatness, he has to beat Hopkins,'' said Bob Arum, De La Hoya's longtime promoter. ``I think if he loses to Hopkins, people will recognize him as an extremely good fighter, certainly a Hall of Fame guy.

``But if he beats Hopkins, he will be recognized as an all-time great.''

To that, there can be no question. De La Hoya knows it. He still believes that he defeated Trinidad and won the second fight with Mosley. But he realizes that a victory over Hopkins would make everyone, including himself, forget those setbacks.

``This fight with Bernard Hopkins, I don't think it gets any better than this,'' De La Hoya, of East Los Angeles, said. ``Fighting for the undisputed middleweight championship, fighting against one of the best fighters out there who hasn't lost in 10 years.

``This is the kind of fight I need to elevate to the next level. I've had some good fights, some great events, I've fought a lot of great champions. It will definitely close the book, fulfill me. It will satisfy me.''

However, there are plenty of people out there who believe De La Hoya (37-3, 29 KOs) already has done enough to warrant the tag of greatness.

``That's not even a question,'' said De La Hoya's trainer, Floyd Mayweather Sr. ``He has already achieved that status. He is going to the Hall of Fame. That means greatness.

``Anybody questioning his heart and ability to fight is sadly mistaken.''

Roberto Duran, arguably the greatest lightweight in history, wholeheartedly agrees.

``He (De La Hoya) is one of the greats in boxing, whether he wins this fight or not,'' Duran said Thursday. ``He has been a good seller, and part of that has to do with his looks, but he also has won a lot of titles.''

Heck, De La Hoya's father, Joel, wouldn't even entertain the notion that his son has not already attained greatness.

``Hey, let me tell you something, he only lost the first fight with Mosley in Los Angeles (in June 2000),'' Joel De La Hoya said Thursday. ``He won the rematch in Las Vegas (in September 2003).

``Same thing with Trinidad (in September 1999). The only reason Trinidad won was because his friend, (promoter) Don King, was there.''

But again, De La Hoya did officially lose all three of those fights. Perhaps that's why he has had what Arum recently referred to as his most focused camp.

This, of course, is much different from his last camp in preparation for Felix Sturm. De La Hoya did escape with a narrow victory to win Sturm's World Boxing Organization belt, but his swollen face proved he had hardly trained.

Moreover, whereas De La Hoya had always trained in the mountains in Big Bear, he trained in Miami for Sturm. For Hopkins, he was back in Big Bear.

``He has never had, in my opinion, the perfect camp,'' Arum said. ``Always, there were distractions. Before he met (his wife) Millie, there were always women up and down, including the Trinidad fight.

``Once he met Millie, she was always up there. He was practicing singing and business and everything. This one, he really focused on. Other than the security guard who kept everybody away, and the essential people, there was nobody ever up there.

``This is a different Oscar, a focused Oscar. The closest he has been to this focus was when he fought Chavez the first time (in June 1996).''

One look at De La Hoya's leaner face tells a story. The usually jovial Golden Boy has cracked few smiles during this promotion. At times, he has actually looked mean.

For Hopkins, who has made a record 18 title defenses, that's a must.

``When I win this fight, all I can say is that there is nothing bigger for me, nothing else to prove in boxing,'' said De La Hoya, who then was asked if that meant he could retire after Saturday's fight.

``To answer your question, being a fighter in the sport, I don't know,'' De La Hoya, 31, said. ``That's the honest truth. I just don't know. When you love boxing, how can you say no? That's the difficult part.''

Robert Morales, [phone], Ext. 2213

robert.morales(at)sgvn.com

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OSCAR DE LA HOYA vs. BERNARD HOPKINS