De Leon Retains WBO Title, Decisions Escobedo

By Mark Vester

On the undercard to Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Ricky Hatton at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas;

WBO super bantamweight champion Daniel Ponce De Leon (34-1, 30KOs) retained his title with a unanimous twelve-round decision over Eduardo Escobedo (20-3, 14KOs).

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Saturday | Jan 31, 2026

Ponce De Leon started slow, being hit with a lot of counters, which caused some concern in his corner. Around the third round, Ponce De Leon began to let his hands go, throwing power punches from odd angles. Ponce De Leon's sheer volume of punches won him the fight. Escobedo was able to land a hard counter here and there, but not hard enough to crack the tough chin of the champion.

The scores were 115-113, 117-111 and 118-110

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In this episode, Paulie Malignaggi and Chris Algieri break down why winning as the underdog in a fight like this is such a big deal — not just for rankings, but for momentum, perception, and long-term stardom.

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