Ginjiro Shigeoka: Boxing Career and Notable Fights
Ginjiro Shigeoka is a Japanese former minimumweight boxer and former IBF world champion. His professional record includes an interim title win over Rene Mark Cuarto in 2023 and a fifth-round stoppage of Daniel Valladares later that year to win the full IBF title.
IBF title reign
Shigeoka stopped Cuarto in the ninth round in April 2023 to claim the interim IBF minimumweight belt. He then faced Valladares again in October after their January contest had been ruled a no-contest because of an accidental clash of heads. Shigeoka won the rematch by fifth-round technical knockout and successfully defended the title against Jake Amparo in March 2024.
Pedro Taduran ended Shigeoka’s title reign with a ninth-round stoppage in July 2024. Taduran also won their May 2025 rematch by decision. Shigeoka collapsed after that fight and underwent emergency brain surgery. The Japan Boxing Commission required his retirement following the surgery, according to contemporary reporting.
The embedded clip is from Shigeoka’s 2023 interim-title victory over Cuarto. BoxRec lists Shigeoka’s professional record as 11 wins, 2 losses and 1 no-contest across 14 bouts, with activity from 2018 to 2025.
Further career results
His successful defense against Jake Amparo took place in Nagoya on March 31, 2024. Shigeoka ended it with a left hook to the body at 1:15 of the second round, preserving an unbeaten professional record at that stage. The two Taduran fights that followed then brought consecutive defeats, with the May 24, 2025 rematch decided by split decision over twelve rounds. His recovery continued long after the emergency operation. The WBC reported that he left hospital in March 2026 after intensive rehabilitation, while still requiring full-time care. His older brother Yudai retired from boxing to support him and the family. Those later developments belong to the aftermath of the 2025 injury, rather than to another planned professional contest.
Sources
Additional sources: https://fightnews.com/ginjiro-shigeoka-sinks-amparo-keeps-ibf-105lb-belt/160091; https://wbcboxing.com/en/wbc-cares-event-in-sasebo-celebrates-inclusivity-and-supports-the-shigeoka-brothers/
- BoxRec: Ginjiro Shigeoka’s professional record
- The Guardian: Japan Boxing Commission safety measures and Shigeoka’s retirement
