De La Hoya Leaves Whitaker in a Huff

Pernell Whitaker was steaming.

And it had nothing to do with the temperature, which soared above 90 degrees Tuesday in this Phoenix suburb, where Whitaker has been training for the last 11 days for his April 12 showdown against Oscar De La Hoya.

No, Whitaker was steaming as he listened to promoter Bob Arum tell reporters about De La Hoya’s upcoming schedule.

De La Hoya (23-0, 20 knockouts) already has a June 14 date set for a San Antonio fight against David Kamau, Wilfredo Rivera or Juan Coggi. Negotiations are underway for a September match against Hector Camacho. And then De La Hoya wants to fight again in December.

All this is predicated on a De La Hoya victory April 12 at Las Vegas’ Thomas & Mack Arena.

Whitaker (40-1-1, 17 knockouts) listened and pursed his lips. When it was his turn to speak, Whitaker shook his head, his agitation obvious at the assumption of victory on April 12 in the De La Hoya camp.

“It just makes me smile,” Whitaker said. “He can still have all those fights. After I’m finished with him, I’m sure he can come back. He has a good future. I just hope I don’t ruin him too much.”

Whitaker said that De La Hoya would still be able to take center stage in the welterweight division after he, Whitaker, has taken his last curtain call.

“I’m closer to the end than the beginning,” said Whitaker, 33.

It would be hard to find two fighters with more contrasting approaches.

De La Hoya is the personification of preparation and humility. When he prepares for a fight, De La Hoya assumes nothing and explores everything, from diet to conditioning to strategy. He employs a nutritionist and a conditioning coach, and makes great use of tapes of previous fights by his upcoming opponents.

Then there’s Whitaker, who smirks at such tactics.

“Those guys can’t help you in the ring,” he said of De La Hoya’s team of handlers. “You use your own head on what to eat. That [the use of a nutritionist] is just spending a few extra dollars.”

Watch tapes? Give me a break, said Whitaker, who insists that he hasn’t watched a punch De La Hoya has thrown in his previous fights and doesn’t intend to.

“That’s what I have guys in my corner for,” Whitaker said. “That’s their job. If I watched tapes, they wouldn’t have anything to do when I come back to my corner. I could feed myself a bottle of water.”

Besides, said Whitaker, he knows what De La Hoya will do.

“If he tries that little jab, I’m going to break his arm,” Whitaker said. “If he tries that left uppercut, I’m going to break his shoulder and then cut him on the chin.”

No blows will be exchanged between the two men for a month. But in the war of words, Whitaker is clearly ahead on points.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Fight Facts

* Who: Oscar De La Hoya (23-0) vs. Pernell Whitaker (40-1-1).

* At stake: Whitaker’s World Boxing Council welterweight (147-pound) title.

* When: April 12.

* Where: Thomas & Mack Arena, Las Vegas.

* TV: Pay-per-view.