Oscar Quickly Leaves a Mark

Oscar De La Hoya entered the ring Saturday night dressed like Zorro’s alter ego, Don Diego de la Vega, disposed of the villain, Patrick Charpentier, in less than three rounds and then rode off into the warm Texas night to the shrieks and screams of 45,368 fans at the Sun Bowl.

As entertainment, it was smooth, predictable and satisfying, with the happy ending the crowd wanted.

As athletic competition, it was considerably less satisfying.

Charpentier proved he didn’t belong in the same ring with De La Hoya, despite the fact that Charpentier was the World Boxing Council’s No. 1 contender for De La Hoya’s welterweight crown.

De La Hoya proved that the bruised tendon in his left wrist, which had twice delayed this fight, has healed.

But beyond that, little was proved other than the fact that De La Hoya can draw fans in Texas no matter whom he fights.

The question of whether he can beat a quality opponent will have to wait for another day.

And not a day in the near future. De La Hoya is next scheduled to face Julio Cesar Chavez in September, a man he has already beaten easily.

“I felt better than ever,” De La Hoya said after the fight. “I had no problems out there.”

Charpentier did.

The European champion (27-5-1, 23 knockouts) had won 12 in a row coming into Saturday night’s fight. He trained for eight months for this match, sparring 150 rounds in the first three months and losing count after that.

But Charpentier quickly learned that he had stepped up in class to a level he couldn’t handle.

In the first round, De La Hoya, who hadn’t fought since December because of the hand injury, looked a bit rusty, missing a few punches.

But it didn’t seem to matter. Charpentier missed nearly all of his punches, his left hook catching only hot air.

“I was a little bit concerned,” De La Hoya said. “I couldn’t warm up because of the suit [the outfit he wore into the ring]. I was a little bit cold. I tried to take my time.”

In the second round, De La Hoya’s powerful left jab began to find the range, rocking the dyed blond head of the man from Vimoutiers, France. De La Hoya threw in a quick flurry, a few left hooks, a strong right hand and it seemed like it was only a matter of time for Charpentier.

That time was the third round.

“We said in the corner,” said Gil Clancy, one of De La Hoya’s trainers, “if you hurt this guy, don’t go crazy. Use patience and take him apart.”

De La Hoya followed that advice perfectly.

A right hand by the champion, followed by a left that banged off the side of Charpentier’s face put the challenger down for the first time.

He gamely got to his feet, but the look on his face made it clear he knew he wouldn’t be standing for long.

Sure enough, De La Hoya put Charpentier down again with a left uppercut.

Once more Charpentier struggled to his feet. And once more, De La Hoya went to work.

This time a straight right hand did the damage, sending Charpentier crashing back to the canvas. As he grabbed at De La Hoya’s leg, trying to regain his equilibrium, referee Laurence Cole knew that he had seen enough, stopping the fight at the 1:56 mark of the third.

“He was hurt,” Cole said of Charpentier. “He was definitely dazed after the second knockdown. I stayed close to him.”

Explained De La Hoya: “He threw a jab and I came with an overhand right. I didn’t think it would come this fast.”

Fast and painless.

“This is the first time I went in injury free,” De La Hoya said, “and came out injury free.”

Charpentier was credited with landing five punches in the fight, although they were hard to discern by those sitting ringside.

Or even De La Hoya.

“He hit me with a few grazing left jabs,” De La Hoya said, “but I didn’t give him the opportunity to hit me. I was hitting him with body punches that he really felt.”

For De La Hoya, who improved to 28-0 with 23 knockouts, this was the fourth successful defense of the title he won from Pernell Whitaker in April of last year.

The crowd, although smaller than the early estimates of a gathering of between 50,000 and 60,000, was still among the largest in this country for a boxing match.

And as long as De La Hoya can draw crowds like that and send them home cheering, what is the motivation for stepping up in competition?

Doesn’t everybody like a happy ending?

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CLOSE CALLS

Bazan defeats Johnston for WBC lightweight title after wind almost blows down a bank of lights at Sun Bowl. C13