Hall of Fame boxer Oscar De La Hoya was arrested for drunk driving Wednesday morning.
De La Hoya, 43, was stopped in Pasadena, California when a police officer spotted him speeding in a Land Rover, according to USA Today, which obtained a police report from the incident. During the stop, the police officer smelled alcohol and administered field sobriety tests, which De La Hoya failed.
The boxer was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, and driving with a blood alcohol content of .08% or greater, both of which are misdemeanors. Earlier in the night, De La Hoya had been spotted at bars in Pasadena and even stopped to pose for a picture with a fan, according to TMZ.
This is not De La Hoya’s first publicized incident with intoxicating substances. He went to rehab in 2011 and 2013 for cocaine and alcohol. At the time, he said that fighting addiction was 10 times harder than taking a punch in the ring. However, he also said that boxing had taught him how to keep fighting.
“It’s like getting punched by a George Foreman or a Mike Tyson and you’re almost counted out,” De La Hoya said at the time. “You have to have the will to wake up, the strength to get back up and the desire to want to fight another round.”
At the time, De La Hoya was positive about his sobriety. “I could have easily chosen to stay down just like hundreds of thousands if not millions of people choose to do,” he said. “And sometimes, that causes them to lose their lives. I’m glad that I didn’t choose that path. It really takes courage to one day say to yourself, ‘You know what? I’m going to change. I have to change my ways for myself and for my family.’ And that’s exactly what I did.”
Last December, De La Hoya was spotted by TMZ leaving a Los Angeles night club. During an interview, he appeared to be slurring his words.
“The Golden Boy” retired in 2008 after a storied career that included an Olympic gold medal and a place in the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame. He is now the CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. The firm did not have a comment on his arrest.
