Pedro Taduran | Facebook photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Philippines officially welcomed its second boxing world champion after Pedro “Kid Heneral” Taduran snatched the International Boxing Federation (IBF) world minimumweight title from erstwhile champion Ginjiro Shigeoka on Sunday, July 28, in Otsu, Japan.
Taduran won convincingly, via a ninth round technical knockout, in front of a massively partisan crowd.
He pinned Shigeoka against the ropes, pounding the champion with vicious combinations to the head and body. Referee Steve Willis saw enough punishment received by Shigeoka and stopped the fight at the 2:50 mark of the said round, marking Taduran’s victory.
READ: Taduran guns for Shigeoka’s IBF world title in Japan on Sunday
It was a sweet redemption for Taduran who climbed from the bottom all the way to earning a world title shot in December by beating Boholano Jake Amparo in their world title eliminator in Bohol.
In fact, Amparo fought ahead of Taduran for the same title against Shigeoka last March, also in Japan, as a last minute replacement, but got defeated.
READ: Apolinar set for undercard bout in Taduran-Shigeoka world title duel
Milestone
Besides reclaiming the IBF title he once held in 2019, Taduran also etched a milestone in his boxing career for debuting in Japan’s boxing scene with a massive win, considering this country is notoriously known as an unforgiving arena for Filipino boxers.
READ: Taduran earns right to fight IBF champ after beating Amparo in Kumong Bol-anon duel
The 27-year-old Taduran, from Albay, previously held the IBF title in 2019, claiming it with a fourth-round stoppage of Samuel Salva. However, he lost the belt in two intense bouts against archrival Rene Mark Cuarto.
With the huge upset win over Shigeoka, Taduran’s professional record improved to 17 wins, four losses, one draw, and 13 knockouts.
Shigeoka, absorbed his first defeat with 11 wins and nine knockouts, ending his one year reign as a world champion.
On the other hand, Taduran not only reclaimed his status as a world champion but also made him the second Filipino to hold a world title, following WBC world minimumweight champion Melvin Jerusalem.
Coincidentally, Jerusalem won the WBC world title by beating Shigeoka’s brother, Yudai Shigeoka, last March in Nagoya, Japan by split decision despite knocking the latter down twice.