Shigeo Nakajima


Shigeo Nakajima is a retired Japanese boxer who is a former WBC junior flyweight champion. He is an alumnus of the Komazawa University.
Nakajima began boxing at Yonekura Boxing Gym at the age of a high school student. He compiled an amateur record of 80–15 before turning professional.

Professional career

Nakajima made his professional debut with a second-round knockout victory at the Korakuen Hall in Tokyo in July 1976, and won over the reigning Japanese junior flyweight champion Kazunori Tenryū via a third-round knockout in a non-title ten round bout in August 1977. However, he was knocked out by the former WBA flyweight champion Bernabe Villacampo with a body blow in the fourth round in March 1978. He lost on points to the future WBA junior flyweight champion Hwan-Jin Kim in August of that year.
On January 3, 1980, Nakajima fought against Kim Sung-Jun for the WBC junior flyweight title at the Korakuen Hall. Preparing for that fight, Joe Koizumi who is familiar with the boxing theory and was later inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame and the World Boxing Hall of Fame, served as Nakajima's trainer. The gym's president Kenji Yonekura made him move to an apartment near his residence, and woke him up every morning to make him do his roadwork. In the third round, his eardrum was perforated and his ribs cracked, and he suffered a cut above his left eye. Nevertheless, Nakajima was crowned the title via a unanimous decision with his quick blows and footwork.
In his first defense in March 1980, he lost to Hilario Zapata via a close unanimous decision at the Kuramae Kokugikan in Tokyo. Yonekura protested that decision of the judges. Yet Nakajima was stopped in the eleventh round of the rematch with Zapata for that title at the Civic Center in Gifu city in September of the same year. After eight months, Nakajima suffered an eight-round knockout loss, and quit boxing.

Professional boxing record

No.ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
19Loss13–5–1Nobuyuki WatanabeKO8 1981-05-26Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
18Loss13–4–1Hilario ZapataTKO11 1980-09-17Civic Center, Gifu, JapanFor WBC light flyweight title
17Loss13–3–1Hilario ZapataUD15 1980-03-24Kokugikan, Tokyo, JapanLost WBC light flyweight title
16Win13–2–1Kim Sung-junUD15 1980-01-03Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, JapanWon WBC light flyweight title
15Win12–2–1Hong Soo YangMD10 1979-11-06Japan
14Win11–2–1Kubomura TomihisaKO3 1979-06-12Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
13Win10–2–1Marciano SekiyamaKO7 1979-03-27Japan
12Loss9–2–1Kim Hwan-jinPTS10 1978-08-29Japan
11Win9–1–1Puma KoyaPTS10 1978-06-30Japan
10Loss8–1–1Bernabe VillacampoKO4 1978-03-07Japan
9Win8–0–1Yukimitsu KondoKO3 1978-01-24Japan
8Win7–0–1Torayuki NanashaKO4 1977-11-29Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
7Win6–0–1Kazunori TenryuKO3 1977-08-23Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
6Win5–0–1Koichi MakiMD10 1977-06-21Japan
5Win4–0–1Masayuki KobayashiPTS10 1977-04-02Kokugikan, Tokyo, Japan
4Win3–0–1Beaver KajimotoPTS10 1976-12-14Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
3Win2–0–1Toshiro FujiiKO5 1976-10-12Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan
2Draw1–0–1Chi Bok KimPTS8 1976-09-16Busan, South Korea
1Win1–0Shigeo MaezawaKO2 1976-07-12Japan

Later life

Nakajima once serves as the president of the golf course development company, and currently acts as the executive secretary of the Pro Boxing World Champions party which is the internal organization of the Japan Pro Boxing Association consisting of Japan's world champions for the social contributions.