IBF minimumweight champion Katsunari Takayama announced Thursday he will make his first title defense against Thailand's Fahlan Sakkreerin Jr in Osaka on April 22.
The fight at Osaka's Bodymaker Colosseum will be part of a world doubleheader, with Kazuto Ioka taking on WBA flyweight champion Juan Carlos Reveco of Argentina in a bid to claim a title at his third weight category.
Takayama stopped Go Odaira with a seventh-round TKO for both the IBF and WBO minimumweight vacant crowns to become the first Japanese to succeed in capturing titles in all four major boxing sanctioning bodies. He has already returned his WBO title.
"Each and every fight is a challenge," said the 31-year-old Takayama. "At my age if you lose the title it makes it difficult to win it again. I want to keep on fighting."
Fahlan is currently ranked eighth in the IBF light flyweight division.