Former junior featherweight titleholder Angelo Leo continued his march toward a featherweight world-title shot with a dominant performance over Eduardo Baez in a ProBox TV “Wednesday Night Fights” main event at Whitesands Events Center in Plant City, Florida.
All three judges scored the bout widely in favor of Leo, 97-93, 98-92 and 98-92. The win was the third in a row for Leo (24-1, 11 KOs) at 126 pounds.
Baez (23-6-2, 9 KOs) opened the action with about 30 seconds left in the first, landing a good body combination to nick the round. In a ferocious second round, Leo landed his trademark left hook to the body almost at will.
Baez landed a good right hand over the top to start the third, but it wouldn’t be long before Leo again started digging left hooks to the body. Leo found his range with a big right hand followed by a right-left combination to the body.
To start the fourth, Leo landed an overhand right, then followed with body shots in what appeared to be an effort to close the show. But Baez hung tough, albeit with only a few snippets of success.
The momentum swung firmly in favor of Leo in the fifth. As Leo chased down his opponent, Baez managed to hold off a full onslaught – but only just so. The fighters traded on the ropes, with Leo getting the best of the exchange, followed by Leo landing a right hand over the top to close the round.
Leo continued to stalk his opponent through the sixth, and Baez was out of ideas as Leo disabled his jab with counter shots. Still, Baez answered back here and there, and pushed forward to start the seventh. Yet Leo showed he was just as comfortable landing overhand rights working off the back foot, and he closed the action in the frame with a smart right to the head.
Baez kept getting the worst of it in the eighth, though he did land a good right hand after the first minute. Leo then landed a big right hand to the chin and a left to the body, closing yet another round on top.
In the ninth, Leo started by snapping off a combination and three consecutive right hands. Baez replied with a jab and a right hand, but he was caught by a thudding right hand to the chin with a minute in the round. Although scrappy, the 10th offered mostly more of the same, as Leo pressed forward and put the finishing touches on a runaway win.
