Cologne - The Bund Deutscher Berufsboxer (BDB) informed Sturm Box-Promotion on Sunday that they suspended professional boxer Sam Soliman after he failed a post-fight doping test in his February 1 fight against former World Champion Felix Sturm in Dusseldorf, Germany. The official result will therefore be overturned from a unanimous decision win for Soliman to a “No Contest”.  

The forbidden stimulant "methylsynephrine/oxilofrine“ was found in Soliman’s A-sample after the bout. He was then offered the opportunity to open the B-sample. According to the regulations of the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), the agency in charge of testing for Sturm vs. Soliman, and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) the B-sample has to opened in the same laboratory (here: the institute for biological chemistry in Cologne, Germany) as the A-sample. This was at first denied by the Soliman camp and they afterwards confessed to drinking an energy drink containing the substance in play, which confirms the A-sample. They claim, however, that this happened without their knowledge.

Roland Bebak, manager of Felix Sturm: “We don’t believe that. According to our information, it is highly unlikely that this substance is contained in an energy drink. We are convinced that they used the substance to get an unfair advantage in the fight.”

Felix Sturm, Three-Time World Middleweight Champion: “I’m glad that this has finally come to an end and that the right decision for a clean sport of boxing was made. In all my years in boxing, I’ve never met anyone as unfair as Soliman and his team. That loomed in the days leading up to the fight and was confirmed by the doping results. There is no room in this sport for drug takers. I can now focus on the preparation for my next fight. It’s time to become champion again!”

We will announce details about Felix Sturm’s next fight in the coming weeks.