Former UFC champion Vitor Belfort has accused six division champion Oscar De La Hoya of fabricating his COVID-19 diagnosis.

They were scheduled to fight each other on September 11, in the main event of a Triller pay-per-view card from the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

De La Hoya, 46-years-old, was going to fight for the first time since suffering a stoppage loss to Manny Pacquiao in 2008.

The contest never went forward, as De La Hoya withdrew after testing positive for COVID.

De La Hoya was replaced by the 58-year-old former undisputed heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield - who Belfort blew away in one round.

Triller is still hoping to make a De La Hoya vs. Belfort boxing match - but the Brazilian fighter is not convinced that it will happen. 

He believes De La Hoya will be too reluctant to sign a contract after watching what happened to Holyfield.

“You could see he didn’t have the coronavirus, he was just scared,” Belfort said to AG Fight. “He’s even more scared now. but he has nowhere to run to. Otherwise it won’t be a good look for him. A lot of people have bought tickets (for the fight), plane tickets. He disrespected his fans, my fans and fighting fans. I have never done that, pretending I’m injured to avoid a fight. That’s what he did in the last week before the fight.

“I’ve beaten the greatest fighter in the history of heavyweight. A guy who destroyed Mike Tyson twice. I didn’t fight a can. I had to gain weight in a short time. He (Oscar) said he would knock me out in 30 seconds. That was the worst part, right? That’s preposterous. What a joke. Sign the contract.”