 Shibata debuted in mixed martial arts on May 15, 2004 at JF Jungle Fights 2 where he defeated Webster Dauphiney by an arm triangle choke in Round 1.Shibata returned to MMA in 2007 where he joined the Fighting and Entertainment Group (FEG) promoted K-1 Hero's, in his K-1 Hero's debut on March 12, 2007 at Hero's 8, he defeated Yoshihisa Yamamoto by TKO in 9 seconds.After two victories, Shibata went on a five fight losing streak.