Treasure Island Boxing’s second event will be headlined when unbeaten middleweights Meiirim Nursultanov and Kazuto Takesako collide at the Paradise City hotel in Incheon, South Korea, on April 15.

In chief support, former junior featherweight titlist Ryosuke Iwasa will face unbeaten Japhethlee Llamido in a featherweight contest.

In Treasure Island Boxing’s maiden event, also in Incheon, former three-division titleholder John Riel Casimero stopped Ryo Akaho in two rounds, while experienced junior lightweight Takuya Watanabe edged past three-time world champion Jhonny Gonzalez (MD 10). Casimero subsequently signed a multi-fight deal with the fledgling company, which hopes to hold multiple events per year.

Nursultanov (18-0, 10 knockouts) would likely be the next addition to The Ring’s middleweight rankings if Ryota Murata (No. 6) officially confirms his retirement plans. He was a standout amateur, winning the national title and also appearing in the WSB. He turned professional on the undercard of Sergey Kovalev-Andre Ward in November 2016. 

Since then, the 29-year-old Kazahkstan-born boxer has moved through the ranks, notably beating Andrey Sirotkin (RTD 5), Sebastian Papeschi (TKO 5) and, most recently, former world title challenger Marcelo Coceres (UD 10).

Takesako (15-0-1, 14 KOs) turned professional in 2015. He won the Japanese national title in his eighth fight, stopping Hikaru Nishida (TKO 1). He went on to make four defenses. In one of them he was held to a draw by Shuji Kato (D 10); to his credit, he stopped Kato (TKO 8) in the rematch.

The 31-year-old has also claimed the OPBF title and has run out of rivals in Japan. This fight should be considered a marked step up onto the international stage.

Iwasa (28-4, 17 KOs) turned professional in 2008. After losing to future world titleholders Shinsuke Yamanaka (TKO 10) and Lee Haskins (TKO 6) at bantamweight, he moved up to junior featherweight and claimed the IBF title by stopping compatriot Yukinori Oguni (TKO 6). Iwasa made one defense before losing to TJ Doheny (UD 12).

The 33-year-old Japanese fighter has since scored impressive wins over Cesar Juarez (TD 10) and Marlon Tapales (TKO 11) to reposition himself as a top contender. However, he lost to IBF/WBA 122-pound titlist Murodjon Akhmadaliev (TKO 5) in his bid to become a two-time champion. He has since returned with a win over Genesis Servania (KO 4).

Lamido (10-0, 4 KOs) turned professional in 2020. After winning his first four fights in Mexico, Lamido began fighting in the United States. The 23-year-old speedster is known for being a sparring partner for three-weight world champion and pound-for-pound star Naoya Inoue. (Read Gym Notes: Naoya Inoue leaves ‘comfort zone’ for taste of L.A. boxing scene.)

The former amateur standout is coming off, on paper, his best win as a professional, stopping Pablo Cruz in one-round.

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