Description : Here we have an original (cancelled date) full-size HBO Boxing fight poster for the long awaited showdown between WBC Light/Middleweight Champion Oscar De La Hoya & WBA Light/Middleweight title holder Fernando Vargas. This was for the unified WBC/WBA titles.
The unification bout, a real genuine grudge match for Latino bragging rights, labeled "Bad Blood," finally took place on September 14, 2002, at the Mandalay Bay on the Las Vegas Strip. The fight was an even give & take affair for the first 6 rounds, with Vargas landing punches on the ropes in the odd rounds, with De La Hoya appearing to edge out the even rounds, De La Hoya's nose was bleeding by the end of the 5th, while Vargas was bleeding from a cut under his right eye by the 7th. During that 7th round the shift in momentum was to De La Hoya who was now taking over the fight, in the 10th, De La Hoya stunned Vargas with a left hook, following a combination to the body at the very end round. Round 11 closed out the fight with one of Oscar De La Hoya's most masterful finishes. Vargas was badly hurt until Oscar uncorked a final flurry and the referee stepped in to stop the beating. The win is widely considered to be the biggest of De La Hoya's career. Vargas tested positive for stanozolol after the fight.
These HBO & Showtime PPV posters are not made available for public consumption & can only be sourced from a participating PPV outlet hence the scarcity as once the televised event if over, then these posters go straight to skip.
Postage: 10.00 UK Special Delivery... 20.00 International.