Alexander May Offer a Test for De La Hoya at Palladium

At least one boxing observer says that Oscar De La Hoya’s pro career actually will begin tonight at the Hollywood Palladium.

De La Hoya, the only American boxing gold medalist at last summer’s Olympic Games tournament, is 2-0 as a professional lightweight, with two first-round knockouts.

Tonight, as part of an ESPN card that will begin at 6, De La Hoya will face tougher opposition in Paris Alexander (15-6-2) of San Francisco.

“I’ve seen Alexander and he’s a solid opponent for Oscar,” said Bruce Trampler, matchmaker for co-promoter Top Rank.

“As far as I’m concerned, this fight is Oscar’s pro debut.”

The bout is scheduled for six rounds. The main event is a 10-rounder matching Costa Mesa’s Rudy Zavala and Jerome Coffee of Las Vegas. Zavala, a junior-featherweight, is 18-1-1, Coffee 35-7-1.

Zavala’s only loss was because of a cut, last July 23 in San Diego when Jesus Salud stopped him in the eighth round.

Also tonight, Cincinnati heavyweight Larry Donald will make his pro debut against Craig Brinson (2-1) of Los Angeles. Donald was the super-heavyweight on last summer’s U.S. Olympic team.

De La Hoya, who will turn 20 Feb. 4, parlayed his Barcelona gold medal into a million-dollar pro contract. Some say that De La Hoya is ready to fight champions now.

His trainer, Robert Alcazar, won’t go quite that far.

“Well, Oscar is ready for contenders right now, and he’ll get a title fight late in 1993,” Alcazar said.

“We want to build his record right now. He’s learning a lot in the gym every day. His attitude is great. He’s working just as hard as he ever did.

“He knows that for all of 1993, he’ll get no more than four days off after every fight, and he has no problem with that.”