'It's a real fight': Oscar De La Hoya coming out of retirement

Boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya has confirmed the rumours he will be coming out of retirement, but it won’t be like Mike Tyson’s return.

De La Hoya, a former world champion with a record of 39-6, is considered one of the greatest to lace up the gloves.

‘'WATCH HIM BREAK YOU’: Israel Adesanya's brutal dig at rival

'HOW GUYS GET HURT': Outrage over ref's 'dangerous' call

The 47-year-old American made his name with a gold medal at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics at 19 years old.

He went on to a prolific professional career, winning 10 world championships across six weight classes while compiling a 39-6 record with 30 KOs. He won his first 31 professional fights.

De La Hoys has since started Golden Boy promotions, but has finally addressed rumours he wants to return.

“The rumours are true, and I'm going to start sparring in the next few weeks," De La Hoya told ESPN.

However, it won’t be an exhibition fight for the 47-year-old boxer.

“It's a real fight,” De La Hoya said. “I miss being in the ring, I love boxing. Boxing is what gave me everything I have today, and I just miss it.”

De La Hoya wants to fight the best

He said that he’ll take on “any top guy” and fight at super welterweight or middleweight (154-160 pounds).

That puts him in a class with Gennadiy Golovkin and client Canelo Alvarez.

However, at 47 years old taking on two greats in Triple GGG and Alvarez might be a stretch.

De La Hoya went on to claim he was feeling good and his jab feels ‘faster than ever’.

“Look, it's been a long time, yes,” De La Hoya said.

“But actually my jab feels faster than ever. I have to make sure that my conditioning is perfect, my health is good. And that's going to take place in the next few weeks. So we'll see.”

With Jason Owens - Yahoo Sport Australia