Editing Oscar De La Hoya (section)

====Rivalry with Fernando Vargas====
{{Main|Oscar De La Hoya vs. Fernando Vargas}}
De La Hoya did not fight for the 15 months and in this time the rivalry between him and WBA champion "Ferocious" [[Fernando Vargas]] (22–1) grew. They knew each other as amateurs and it is said the rivalry began when Vargas was angered by De La Hoya laughing at him after he fell into a snowbank. De La Hoya said he would never fight him. Eventually, however, De La Hoya accepted a match. The fight was scheduled for May 2002, but De La Hoya had to withdraw because of a hand injury.

The unification bout, labeled "Bad Blood," finally took place on September 14, 2002, at the Mandalay Bay on the Las Vegas Strip. The fight was even for the first six rounds, with Vargas landing punches on the ropes in the odd rounds, while De La Hoya outboxed him in the even rounds. De La Hoya took over the fight in the seventh round and hurt Vargas with a left hook in the tenth. In the next round, De La Hoya knocked Vargas down with a left hook and stopped him moments later. The win is widely considered to be the biggest of De La Hoya's career. Vargas tested positive for [[stanozolol]] after the fight.