Oscar De La Hoya says he has a good explanation for not showing up to Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia's post-fight press conference on Saturday ... he received death threats, and was concerned for his safety!
The 50-year-old former boxer broke it down for fans on social media ... after people noticed ODLH was a no-show after Tank KO'd his Golden Boy Promotion boxer in the 7th round.
"My security team told me 'boss we gotta get the f*** out of here' because I received death threats," ODLH said in the video.
"You guys don't know this, I received death threats throughout the whole week and they just said it was simply too dangerous, so we got out of there."
Oscar also explained why his partner, Bernard Hopkins -- former champion boxer and current Golden Boy promoter -- was also MIA following the fight, saying he was accused of trying to touch Davis with a banned substance during weigh-ins the previous day.
"Bernard Hopkins was accused during the weigh-in of having testosterone cream on his hands and touching Gervonta Davis when he only wanted to help him because he was going to fall off the stage," ODLH said.
"So, PBC, Gervonta's promoter, banned him from everything. He couldn't get inside the ring. He couldn't do anything during the promotion."
You can actually see Tank on video yelling at Hopkins, demanding he not touch him during the pre-fight event.
Bernard Hopkins: *Puts his hand on Gervontaโs back*
Gervonta Davis: โDO NOT TOUCH ME. DO NOT TOUCH ME!โ *puts fist in front of his face* ๐๐๐๐
CLOSE-UP to the Gervonta Davis and Bernard Hopkins altercation
pic.twitter.com/9tLPL1zCfz
Bottom line is Oscar is attempting to put all the speculation to rest, insisting he didn't go AWOL when Garcia needed him after his first-career loss. In fact, ODLH says he's proud of his boxer and Tank for putting on an exceptional event.
"The best man won," ODLH said. "Tank Davis you're a great fighter."
"Ryan Garcia, I have your back. Bernard has your back. We're with you 100% and you will be back stronger than ever, better than ever. Guaranteed."
GettyAfter the fight, 23-1 Garcia made it clear he wants to rematch 29-0 Davis down the line ... and many King Ry supporters, including UFC superstar Conor McGregor, definitely want to see that happen.
Stay tuned!
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