Highlights of Oscar De La Hoya’s career

Oscar De La Hoya, 36, announced his retirement from boxing Tuesday after a decorated professional career of more than 16 years that included a record six world titles in different divisions, 10 belts in all and a secured standing as the most lucrative fighter in boxing history.

Four months removed from being battered over eight rounds by Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas, De La Hoya (39-6, 30 knockouts) announced at downtown’s L.A. Live venue that, “It’s not fair to step inside the ring and not give my best. . . . When your body doesn’t respond . . . it’s a tough decision, very, very difficult.”

He promised, “this is the end for me,” and thus capped a career that one writer called a “phenomenon,” as the young amateur from East Los Angeles rose from a humble childhood to become the most popular fighter in the world.

Here’s 10 highlights that defined De La Hoya’s journey:

* Won the 1992 Olympic gold medal. Two years removed from his promise to his cancer-stricken mother, Cecilia, on her deathbed to win an Olympic gold, De La Hoya showcased his speed and ring discipline throughout the Olympic tournament in Barcelona. His fights were given heavy coverage by NBC and made the “Golden Boy” a household name even before his first pro bout.

* Makes professional debut on Nov. 23, 1992. De La Hoya dismisses Lamar Williams with a first-round knockout at the Forum in Inglewood and embarks on a string of 21 knockouts in his first 23 fights.

* Fighting at the Olympic Auditorium in 1994, he scores a technical knockout of Jimmi Bredahl in the 10th round to win his first world title, as a super-featherweight.

* Starts the Oscar De La Hoya Foundation in 1995, which funds projects including a cancer center in his mother’s name and a neo-natal intensive care unit at White Memorial Medical Center in East Los Angeles. He later starts a charter high school in East L.A.

* Dismantles Mexican hero Julio Cesar Chavez in a fourth-round TKO in 1996, and again by eighth-round TKO in 1998, to win a world light-welterweight title the first time and defend his world welterweight title in the rematch. The impressive victories provoke an anti-De La Hoya sentiment among some Latino boxing fans, mostly male, and boos shower De La Hoya at some Southland events he attends.

* Loses his first pro fight in a narrow 1999 decision [one judge scored it a draw] against Felix Trinidad. De La Hoya had racked up points until the later rounds, when he began to backpedal and was upended by the unbeaten Puerto Rican. A rematch, making sense given a record pay-per-view audience among non-heavyweights, never happens.

* Has long-awaited, sellout showdown in 2000 with childhood opponent Shane Mosley of Pomona at Staples Center, where a statue of De La Hoya now stands. Mosley retained more energy through the later rounds and won a split decision that De La Hoya objected to. He would later split with longtime trainer Robert Alcazar, starting a cycle of trainers that included Emanuel Steward, Floyd Mayweather Sr., Freddie Roach and “Nacho” Beristain.

* Marries Puerto Rico singing star Millie Corretjer in 2001. The couple now have two children, and are reportedly ready to settle in Pasadena, near the Los Angeles headquarters of De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions.

* De La Hoya scores a compelling 11th-round TKO of Oxnard rival Fernando Vargas in 2002 world light-middleweight title fight in Las Vegas. Vargas had barked to De La Hoya about being a “true Mexican” in promotional events beforehand, and the pair exchanged a memorable muscle-flexing back-and-forth at the weigh-in.

* De La Hoya’s road to retirement is clinched with four losses in his final seven fights, including another close decision to Mosley in 2003, a knockout loss to middleweight champ Bernard Hopkins in 2004 and a close decision defeat against Floyd Mayweather Jr. The Mayweather loss is eased by record revenue, including more than 2 million pay-per-view buys and upward of $134 million in total revenue counting the live Vegas gate.

* Manny Pacquiao repeatedly beats De La Hoya to the punch in their Dec. 6, 2008, bout at MGM Grand in Las Vegas. De La Hoya’s corner throws in the towel before the bell starts the ninth round, and the “Golden Boy” confides to former trainer Roach, “I don’t have it anymore.” He made it official Tuesday on a stage that included his wife, father, Golden Boy Promotions business partner Richard Schaefer and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

-- Lance Pugmire