Oscar De La Hoya has opened up about letting Travis Barker raise his daughter.
During a Thursday appearance on the Allison Interviews podcast, the former professional boxer revealed why he let the Blink 182 drummer step in to raise his now 24-year-old daughter Atiana.
“I basically ran away,” Oscar admitted in his interview. “I was scared. I was fearful.”
Oscar welcomed Atiana with then-fiancée Shanna Moakler in September 2000, before the pair split later that year. Travis married Shanna in 2004, becoming a step-father to Atiana.
“I did try to be a father full-time for a few years, and it was beautiful. It was amazing to raise a little girl, but there came a point where you say to yourself, ‘Wait a minute, you’re not worthy of this,’” Oscar continued on the podcast. “You try to convince yourself that you are not worthy of this… That love is not possible in your life, because of what I lived through, not receiving that love when I was a kid.”
He explained that his own experience with his parents left him feeling unable to adequately parent Atiana. Oscar was born into a boxing family in East Los Angeles, with his grandfather, father, and brother also boxing.
“My father never told me, ‘I love you,’” the star shared. “My mother never told me she loved me. She never really gave me a hug.”
He added, “When I would cry, she would start hitting me. That is how bad it was…
“Even though I was apart (from Atiana), I felt like I was always close, but I didn’t feel like I was worthy enough to do the job.”
