De La Hoya Resumes Sparring

A week after reinjuring his left hand, Oscar De La Hoya said Wednesday he is sparring again and expects to be at full strength for his Sept. 13 super-welterweight title fight against Shane Mosley in the MGM Grand Garden Arena at Las Vegas.

“I guarantee that the hand will be 100%,” De La Hoya said from his training camp at Big Bear, adding that medical tests revealed no serious damage.

De La Hoya said he is throwing his left hand at “full force,” after suspending sparring sessions for three days. He said the time off was a blessing in disguise.

“It helped me rest my body and relax,” he said.

De La Hoya has periodically experienced pain just above his left wrist for several years. He had an operation to remove cartilage from the area after canceling a fight against Roman Karmazin in December 2001.

“Pain or no pain, I have to live with the fact that the wrist will never be the same again,” he said.

Despite his wrist’s vulnerability, De La Hoya said Mosley should expect more than a barrage of right-hand punches.

“He’s definitely going to have to be looking for a lot of combinations,” he said.

-- Rob Fernas