De La Hoya’s Debut as a Pro Is Golden : Boxing: East L.A. lightweight needs only 1:42 to defeat Williams, but acknowledges being nervous.

Oscar De La Hoya launched his professional boxing career at 9:22 p.m. Monday night at the Forum.

By 9:24 p.m., he was 1-0 and looking happily to a future more golden than his recent past.

He hopes there will be multimillion-dollar paydays that will dwarf the $150,000 he earned Monday before 6,185, including heavyweight champion Riddick Bowe.

De La Hoya stopped a weak challenger, Lamar Williams of Erie, Pa., who said he had never been knocked off his feet in going 6-2. De La Hoya knocked him down three times during the first round, and referee Marty Denkin stopped the fight after 1 minute 42 seconds.

There was a party atmosphere for the pro debut of the 19-year-old East L.A. lightweight, three months after he won the only American Olympic boxing gold medal at Barcelona. He entered the ring smiling broadly from beneath a black sombrero and waved little Mexican and U.S. flags.

He wore a jacket sewn from flags of the two countries, as did his cornermen. He was introduced by Jimmy Lennon Jr. with what apparently is his new nickname, “the Golden Boy.”

For half a minute, De La Hoya seemed tight, nervously stalking the retreating Williams with a quick, darting left jab. He landed a lead right hand, then another right followed by a left hook. Forty seconds into the match, Williams was down in a neutral corner.

Afterward, De La Hoya said that first combination gave him sufficient confidence to quickly finish Williams.

De La Hoya launched a punishing combination with the one punch that more than any was his trademark in his 12-year amateur career--a left hook to the ribs.

Williams was down again 70 seconds into the fight, and again took a full eight-count from Denkin while on his knees.

De La Hoya staggered Williams again with a long right hand, and Williams went reeling into the ropes. De La Hoya threw another combination, but when Williams fell, it seemed more of a delayed reaction to the first right hand.

De La Hoya said the long wait for that first pro match had left him “nervous, cold and shaky,” right up to the introductions.

“But once they rang the bell, I was ready,” he added.

“I wish I’d had more rounds. I felt strong, very fast. I felt comfortable, but it was weird without the headgear.

“The eight-ounce gloves (he wore 10-ounce gloves as an amateur) are too dangerous. I told my corner I was afraid of the damage I could do. I worried about injuring him.”

How did Monday’s victory compare to his Barcelona victory?

“Winning the gold medal felt much better--there’s no experience like winning the gold medal.”

Of boxing before thousands of Southland fans, he said: “I felt nervous, but I wanted to do a good job and look professional.

“I felt strong all the way. I was looking into his eyes and I didn’t want to admit that I was nervous.”

How far away is he from a title fight?

“I hope to get it in a year to a year and a half--only time can tell. I’m going to be prepared.”

De La Hoya, who wants to return for a second Forum bout in March, will fight Dec. 12 in Phoenix on the undercard of a Bob Arum pay-per-view show topped by Michael Carbajal. De La Hoya’s opponent will be Cliff Hicks (15-7) of North Carolina.

On Monday night, the old amateur years seemed far behind him. For one thing, it was the first time he ever had competed when spectators could inspect his haircut. And for the first time, he boxed bare-chested, without a singlet.

On the undercard, top-10 heavyweight Alex Garcia of San Fernando struggled against Ossie Ocasio of Puerto Rico for much of his 10-round fight, but Garcia finally stopped Ocasio in the eighth round.

Garcia (28-1) seemed puzzled by the 37-year-old Ocasio (23-13-1), who fought Garcia virtually even for four rounds. Garcia then picked up the pace during the fifth round and turned the bout around.

Ocasio couldn’t take the pressure, and went down twice during the sixth round and twice during the eighth. Referee Rudy Jordan stopped the fight at 2:05 of the eighth.