De La Hoya on the Undercard--for the Last Time?

Tonight is run-through night for Oscar De La Hoya, an undercard dress rehearsal for his long-planned championship main event.

Michael Carbajal, hometown favorite and International Boxing Federation and World Boxing Council junior-flyweight champion, headlines the pay-per-view show at the America West Arena in a 12-round title defense against Domingo Sosa.

De La Hoya, as he has through most of his young career, will play a supporting role in a scheduled 10-round fight against veteran Narciso Valenzuela. But, with his first title fight looming, probably in February, De La Hoya’s days as an undercard fighter are about over.

“Oscar De La Hoya will never fight on an undercard after this for the rest of his career,” said his promoter, Bob Arum.

Although De La Hoya (10-0, nine knockouts) has another fight in December before the February title shot, this one, against Valenzuela (35-12-2, 23 KOs), is widely accepted among De La Hoya’s handlers as the last major barometer to determine his title readiness.

Plans are for De La Hoya to fight Los Angeles’ Genaro Hernandez for Hernandez’s World Boxing Assn. junior-lightweight title.

De La Hoya, who has never fought professionally at anything lighter than 131 pounds and was up to 135 for his last fight, Aug. 27, appears noticeably trimmer than in recent months.

But at Friday’s weigh-in, De La Hoya was at 133 1/2, half a pound over the contracted weight limit. Valenzuela, however, also was at 133 1/2, so the limit was waived.

Originally, De La Hoya was scheduled to fight Valenzuela on July 17 in Las Vegas, but that was scuttled when De La Hoya injured tendons in his left wrist two weeks before the fight.

Since then, De La Hoya has stopped Renaldo Carter and Angelo Nunez, both lightly regarded. Valenzuela, who was thought to be a tough opponent, has seen his star dim by losing both his fights this year.

“(De La Hoya) will go down because I am quicker, stronger and more experienced than him,” Valenzuela has said. “I would have knocked him out in July, and I can still do it in October.”

Sosa, meanwhile, finds confidence in the knowledge that although he lost to Humberto (Chiquita) Gonzalez last year, he was not knocked down.

Carbajal, in one of the most exciting fights of 1993, was knocked down twice by Gonzalez before winning with a seventh-round knockout in March.

“If he comes to fight, Michael will knock him out,” said Carbajal’s older brother and trainer, Danny Carbajal. “I hope he comes in to fight and not just survive. If he tries to just survive, it might go the distance.”

Also on the card, former world champion Lupe Aquino (45-5-3, 33 KOs) will fight Verno Phillips (21-4-1, 11 KOs) for the vacant World Boxing Organization super-welterweight title.

Heavyweight Larry Donald, a 1992 Olympian, and 18-year-old Oxnard junior-lightweight Robert Garcia, whose contract is owned by De La Hoya, are also scheduled to fight.