General Information

New year, new coach, new challenge: Sebastian Sylvester has big plans for 2009. After dropping a points decision against WBA middleweight champion Felix Sturm in November, the Hurricane decided to make a change. In 2009 he will not continue to work with the Viking Box-Team of manager Winfried Spiering and coach Hartmut Schroder. From the end of January on, he will work out in Berlin-Marzahn under the guidance of Karsten Rower. The new coach has been under contract with Sauerland Event since November 2008 and shall lead the ex-champion back to former glory. “Without a doubt this is a very important step in my career,” Sylvester said. “After all the years with Winne Spiering and Hartmut Schroder this decision did not come easily. But after giving it a deliberate thought, I decided that this is the right move for me.”

For several years, Sylvester has been promoted by Sauerland Event, while at the same time having a separate management contract with Winfried Spiering. However, the 28-year-old did not wish to follow the plans of his manager, who had intended to let him fight for different promoters. “My future is with Sauerland Event,” Sylvester said. “That is why this was the only way for me.” And Sauerland Event General Manager Chris Meyer added: “With us promoting Sebastian, he became European champion twice and earned a world title shot. That is a very good record. When Sebastian asked whether he could join us completely, we of course agreed.” Due to his long-time ties, coach Hartmut Schroder did not want to leave the Viking Team. “I owe Hartmut Schroder a lot,” Sylvester added. “He is more than just a coach for me. But now I am starting over again with Karsten Rower. I am very optimistic.”

Rower is an accomplished amateur fighter and coach. 1996 he made Jurgen Brahmer the youth amateur champion. 2007 Rower turned pro and was appointed head coach at Hamburg-based boxing stable Arena before signing a contract with Sauerland Event at the end of 2008. Judging from their mentality, the new coach and his new fighter are sure to get along well – they are both from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. “The first impressions at our initial meeting were absolutely positive,” Rower said. “Sebastian is highly motivated and very ambitious. We will be working very hard and set our goals high.”

2008 was a special year for the Hurricane who challenged WBA middleweight champion Felix Sturm for the world title, dropping a unanimous points decision in early favour. But Sylvester has proven that he can bounce back from setbacks. In June 2006, he was deprived of his European belt when Amin Asikainen clinched a surprise eighth-round TKO victory in Hannover. “Sometimes a loss can be good for your career,” said Sylvester. “It certainly was painful, but at the end of the day, it has made me a much better boxer.” One year later, Sylvester erased the darkest hour of his career with a fine 11th-round stoppage of the previously unbeaten Finn. “The European belt is back where it belongs,” he smiled. “But I´m not finished yet. I have higher goals.”

Sylvester has always been an ambitious man. Born in Greifswald near the Baltic Sea, he turned pro in May 2002 after 95 fights as an amateur. He made himself a name in July 2004 when he stopped highly-rated Dirk Dzemski in the seventh round. Then coached by Hartmut Schroeder and jointly managed by Winfried Spiering and Wilfried Sauerland, Sylvester clinched the IBF middleweight title with an uncontested victory over Robert Roselia. In July 2005, he comprehensively saw off Morrade Hakkar to become European middleweight champion. After two successful defences, Asikainen snapped his 21-fight winning streak with a stunning eighth-round TKO victory. A small break helped to clear the mind, and less than three months later, Sylvester was back in the ring. He stopped Petr Rykala before winning the vacant WBA intercontinental title with a close points victory over Franck Mezaache.

He continued his march back to the top with an eighth-round stoppage of Peter Mitrevski Jr. A straight right to the head spectacularly dusted the Australian middleweight. "I am pleased with my performance," Sylvester said afterwards. "I knew I was going to win after three or four rounds." The Hurricane eventually picked up speed in the sixth and continuously punished Mitrevski with quick shots to the head. His dominance then told in the eight when he delivered the knock-out punch.

Next up was a successful homecoming, with Sylvester stopping Italy´s Alessio Furlan in the 12^th round of a one-sided meeting in Rostock. Much to the delight of his 4,500 home fans, Sylvester knocked Furlan down in the seventh with one of his thunderous rights. The challenger somehow managed to hang on, but when the Hurricane caught Furlan with another series of punches in the 12th, the referee eventually stepped in to end the beating. "It was great to fight in front of my home fans," said Sylvester. "When I heard the crowd in the locker room I knew that nothing could go wrong tonight. Furlan really had an iron head."

Then came the highly-anticipated rematch against Asikainen, and this time, Sylvester delivered. 385 days and 11 hard-fought rounds after his biggest disappointment, the Hurricane restored his pride. He sent Asikainen to the canvas three times, first in the seventh with a left hook and then again in the penultimate round when two thunderous rights connected. "I can´t believe it," the newly-crowded champion enthused afterwards. "It was a tough bout. But I never stopped believing in myself. I learned from my mistakes last year and stuck to my game plan. It feels great."

It was a close encounter from the first bell on, with Asikainen getting the better off his opponent early. He even knocked the German down at the end of round one. "I was a bit overconfident afterwards," Asikainen admitted. "It was a very hard fight. I was not careful enough and his shots were well-placed." As the fight went on, Sylvester made good use of his speed and punching power to land numerous shots, but Asikainen remained dangerous, especially from close range. "Sebastian simply had to wait for his chance," coach Hartmut Schroeder lauded. "We knew it would come in the later rounds. Sebastian has strong legs and can punch very hard."

Sylvester rocked the building - and his opponent - in the seventh when a crisp left hook sent Asikainen down. Four rounds later, it was a right that flattened the Finn for a second time. He scrambled back to his feet but found himself in the dust straight away following another right, which prompted the referee to call the bout to a halt.

Sylvester returned in October to clinch a split decision victory over Italy´s Simone Rotolo. However, he was hindered by a deep cut below his right eye which he had picked up in practice. It would resurface after two rounds, which briefly saw Sylvester losing his rhythm. “I started out strongly but focused on my defense in the following,” he said. Not that he neglected his offensive duties, though. In the fourth, he knocked Rotolo down with a thunderous one-two combination before cruising to an uncontested win. His dominance was not mirrored by the scorecards, though, with two judges ruling the contest 115-112 and 115-114, while the third one called the bout 116-112 in favour of the challenger.

Even the Italian admitted he was "surprised" by the verdict. "I fought well but I don´t think I won," Rotolo said. "I was surprised when I heard the result." And Sauerland managing director Chris Meyer added: "Maybe the judge got mixed up with the corners."

In January, he outclassed Frenchman Francois Bastient. The Hurricane was ahead 120-108, 118-109 and 119-108 after twelve lopsided rounds. “I am pleased with my performance,” Sylvester said. “Everything went according to plan. I have big goals for 2008 and this was a great first step. I want to become world champion.” The 27-year-old did well to keep his offensive-minded opponent (33-6, 15 KOs) at bay throughout the whole fight while cleverly tearing him apart with well-placed shots. In the eighth, he knocked him down with a huge body shot. Bastient prevailed but never threatened.

In April 2008, Sylvester then knocked out former world champion Javier Castillejo in spectacular fashion in the final to set up the clash with Sturm. A sell-out crowd in Neubrandenburg celebrated their local hero for that can be described as the best performance of his career. Castillejo was unconscious for a short time after the Hurricane dusted him with a big right hand to the head. In his fight against Sturm, however, he could now follow up the great performance and was the clear loser on the scorecards in the first all-German fight in almost a decade. He bounced back with a seventh-round KO victory over Gaetano Nespro in front of a sell-out crowd of 4,600 fans in Neubrandenburg. A big right to the chin dusted his opponent as the Hurricane got his working relationship with Karsten Rower off to a winning start.