LAS VEGAS -- Oscar De La Hoya doesn't know what the fuss is all about.

To him, Saturday night's fight with Fernando Vargas is nothing personal, no matter what Vargas says.

"Just another day at the office," De La Hoya said.

Not to Vargas. He has trouble controlling his dislike for De La Hoya, even though he won't say exactly what he has against the former Olympic champion.

"It's personal," Vargas said.

The fight is billed as "Bad Blood," and sure enough there were a pair of plexiglass screens to separate De La Hoya and Vargas in case either of them got out of hand at Tuesday's final pre-fight news conference.

They needn't have bothered.

There was no pushing, no shoving, no trash talking. There was little, in fact, to indicate either 154-pound champion had a problem with the other.

"I don't dislike anyone," De La Hoya said. "It's not in my nature."

The scene was quite different from a January news conference announcing the fight, when the two boxers shoved each other and exchanged words.

Eight months later, Vargas wouldn't even say why he hates his hometown rival so much.

"We'll talk about it after the fight," Vargas said.

The civility was almost enough to make promoter Bob Arum wince. Despite their obvious talents and the fact both hold 154-pound titles, much of the buildup for Saturday's fight has been based on the so-called rivalry between the two.

About the only entertainment came from De La Hoya's trainer, Floyd Mayweather Sr., who read what could only loosely be described as a poem of sorts promising that Vargas would be knocked out when the rivals meet.

"You come to Las Vegas on vacation and you're going back on probation," Mayweather told Vargas.

If the crowd at the Mandalay Bay hotel-casino was looking for excitement, they better hope they'll get it when the two meet in a scheduled 12-round fight in the hotel's arena for the WBA junior middleweight and WBC super welterweight titles.

Vargas brings a grudge against his fellow Los Angeles fighter into the fight that may define his young career. He's got a reputation as a big puncher, but must answer questions about whether there are lingering effects from his devastating knockout loss to Felix Trinidad.

De La Hoya, on the other hand, finds himself in yet another title fight -- his 23rd -- for another huge payday.

De La Hoya is a 2-1 favorite in only his second fight at 154 pounds and his first since he beat Javier Castillejo 15 months ago to win the WBC title.

De La Hoya and Vargas were to have met May 4, but De La Hoya injured his left hand in training and had arthroscopic surgery.

"He's fighting someone bigger than him for the first time in his career," Vargas said. "You're going to see in me a physically, mentally and spiritually ready fighter."

While De La Hoya has had trouble with his hands, Vargas must answer questions about the chin that allowed him to go down five times against Trinidad. He has fought twice since, and didn't look particularly impressive in either fight.

"I guess he has to be a more careful fighter now," De La Hoya said. "His jaw isn't there, that's for sure. Trinidad exposed that."

De La Hoya will earn about $14 million for the fight, which will be televised by pay-per-view for a suggested price of $49.95. Vargas will earn $6 million.