Kenshiro Teraji, known as Ken Shiro, is a Japanese professional boxer and unified flyweight champion, having held the World Boxing Council title since October 2024, and the World Boxing Association title since March 2025.
45 Facts About Kenshiro Teraji
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Kenshiro Teraji has unified titles in two divisions, having previously held the WBC light flyweight title from 2017 to 2021, and the WBA, WBC, and The Ring light flyweight titles from 2022 to 2024.
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Kenshiro Teraji is ranked as the world's best active flyweight by BoxRec, second by The Ring and ESPN, and fourth by the TBRB.
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Kenshiro Teraji is the son of Hisashi Kenshiro Teraji, a boxer who won the OPBF light heavyweight and Japanese national middleweight title.
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Kenshiro Teraji made his professional debut in August 2014, winning a six-round unanimous decision against Heri Amol.
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Kenshiro Teraji won his first belt in October 2015, beating Rolly Sumalpong for the WBC Youth light flyweight title by unanimous decision.
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On his next fight, Kenshiro Teraji went on to claim the Japanese national light flyweight title, beating Kenichi Horikawa with a unanimous decision.
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In May 2017, Kenshiro Teraji was scheduled to face the reigning WBC light flyweight world champion Ganigan Lopez, in what was his 10th professional bout and Lopez's second title defense.
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Kenshiro Teraji was leading the fight on the scorecards going into the eight round, after which Lopez managed to make a comeback.
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Kenshiro Teraji later stated he was unsure of how the judges had scored the fight, which was the reason why he engaged in trading power shots in the final round, attempting to knock Lopez out.
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Kenshiro Teraji was scheduled to make his first title defense against the former WBC light flyweight champion Pedro Guevara on October 22,2017.
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Kenshiro Teraji rallied in the second half of the fight and won another narrow majority decision.
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Kenshiro Teraji completely dominated the Panamanian fighter en route to a fourth-round technical knockout victory.
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Kenshiro Teraji knocked Pedroza down twice in the fourth round, with referee Laurence Cole deeming Pedroza unable to fight, following the second knockdown.
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Kenshiro Teraji won their first meeting by majority decision to become the WBC light flyweight champion.
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Kenshiro Teraji won the fight by a second-round body shot knockout.
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Kenshiro Teraji attributed his poor performance in their first meeting to the fact that he hadn't fought a southpaw up to that point, while he was more accustomed to fighting southpaw opponents in their second meeting.
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Kenshiro Teraji was scheduled to mount the fourth defense of his WBC light flyweight title against the former IBF and IBO light flyweight champion Milan Melindo, on October 7,2018.
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Kenshiro Teraji fought on the undercard of Naoya Inoue, as Inoue took on Juan Carlos Payano.
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Kenshiro Teraji kept up a steady diet of jabs throughout the fight, which opened up a cut over Melindo's right eye.
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Kenshiro Teraji was scheduled to defend his WBC light flyweight title for the fifth time against the one-time WBC light flyweight title challenger Saul Juarez.
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Kenshiro Teraji started the fight strongly, and remained dominant for the entirety of the bout.
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Kenshiro Teraji was scheduled to make the sixth defense of his WBC light flyweight title against the reigning World Boxing Council International Light Flyweight champion Jonathan Taconing, on July 12,2019.
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Early on in the fourth round, Kenshiro Teraji responded to Taconing's pressure by sidestepping and hitting his opponent with a counter-right straight.
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Kenshiro Teraji was scheduled to fight the reigning IBF light flyweight champion Felix Alvarado in a title unification bout, on December 23,2019.
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Kenshiro Teraji began landing shots to the body of Petalcorin in the third round, scoring three body shot knockdowns.
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Kenshiro Teraji was scheduled to make his eight WBC title defense against the mandatory challenger Tetsuya Hisada, on December 18,2020.
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However, on November 15,2020, Kenshiro Teraji was involved in a drunk driving incident, during which he drove into another persons property and crashed into a vehicle parked there.
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Kenshiro Teraji extended his title defense streak to eight, with a dominant decision victory over Hisada.
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Kenshiro Teraji was scheduled to make his ninth WBC title defense against the reigning Japanese light flyweight titlist Masamichi Yabuki on September 10,2021, in his native Kyoto.
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Two months after Kenshiro Teraji lost his belt, on November 15,2021, representatives of both fighters held a press conference announcing that a rematch was in the works.
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Kenshiro Teraji won the fight by a third-round knockout, flooring Yabuki with a right straight.
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Kenshiro Teraji faced the WBA and The Ring light flyweight titleholder Hiroto Kyoguchi in a title unification bout on November 1,2022, in what was just the second ever title unification match between two titlists from Japan.
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Kenshiro Teraji won the fight by a seventh-round technical knockout.
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Kenshiro Teraji knocked his opponent down with a right cross in the fifth round.
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On November 9,2022, Kenshiro Teraji was ordered to make a mandatory title defense against the one-time unified light flyweight champion Hekkie Budler.
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Budler agreed to an undisclosed step-aside fee on January 11,2023, which allowed Kenshiro Teraji to enter into negotiations with the WBO light flyweight champion Jonathan Gonzalez.
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Kenshiro Teraji was replaced by Anthony Olascuaga, a former sparring partner of Teraji.
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Kenshiro Teraji won the fight by a ninth-round technical knockout, after twice knocking Olascuaga down.
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Kenshiro Teraji was booked to make his second championship defense as a unified champion against the former WBA mini-flyweight and unified light-flyweight champion Hekkie Budler, who previously accepted step-aside money to allow Kenshiro Teraji to purse a unification bout with Jonathan Gonzalez.
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Kenshiro Teraji announced he would make his third title defense sometime in January, during a guest appearance on the "Excite Match SP" show, produced by Wowow on November 30,2023.
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On October 13,2024 at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, Kenshiro Teraji defeated Cristofer Rosales via 11th-round TKO to win the vacant WBC flyweight title.
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Kenshiro Teraji defended his WBC flyweight title against current WBA flyweight champion Seigo Yuri Akui in a championship unification at Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo on March 13,2025.
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Kenshiro Teraji won the fight defeating Akui by TKO in the 12th round with a barrage of punches.
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On November 15,2020, Kenshiro Teraji was involved in a drunk driving incident, during which he drove into another persons property and crashed into a vehicle parked there.