Sebastian Sylvester is determined to fight for the world title again soon. He could make a giant stride into the right direction with a victory over Lajuan Simon. The duo will come face-to-face on the Abraham undercard in Berlin on June 27. Sylvester will defend his IBF International Middleweight Title, with the bout also serving as an eliminator for the IBF number 2 spot. Giovanni Lorenzo, who will face King Arthur this fall, is currently in the top spot. “If Sebastian defeats Simon we would be very well positioned within the IBF, with Arthur the champion and Sebastian the number 2,” Sauerland Event General Manager Chris Meyer said..
Sylvester (30-3, 15 KOs), who had challenged WBA middleweight champion Felix Sturm last November, returned to winning ways in February when he knocked out Gaetano Nespro in the seventh round. He is back in the top ten of all leading boxing associations and now looks to follow it up with a success against Simon (21-1, 12 KOs). But after the American gave King Arthur a tough fight in March, Sylvester will not take him lightly. “I saw the fight on TV,” Sylvester said. “I did not know that I would box him. But now I know what to expect in Berlin. It is quite an accomplishment to go the distance with Arthur Abraham. Simon did not show any signs of fear and kept marching forward despite taking several strong shots. He tried very hard and fought very well.”
Under the guidance of Karsten Rower, Sylvester is currently shaping up in Gustrow in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. “Things are going very well,” he said. “I am really blossoming. My coach knows how to motivate me. If I have a bad day, he knows how to deal with it, ordering me to go running. Then everything is fine again. I really enjoy working with him.”
First Lady presents special “Berlin Wall Fashion”
Inside the ring, WBA/WBC female welterweight champion Cecilia Braekhus usually wears a white skirt. Outside the ring, the First Lady now presented a special collection featuring motives of the famous Berlin wall. Designer Daniel Rodan has created a new collection called “Mauerkleider” (“Wall-Clothes”) to honour the 20th anniversary of the fall of the wall.
Together with his colleagues, Rodan transferred paintings of the East Side Gallery into fashion. The Berlin Wall East Side Gallery is a 1.3-km-long section of the wall near the centre of Berlin. More than 100 paintings by artists from all over the world cover this memorial for freedom and make it the largest open air gallery in the world. Celebrities such as German singer Udo Lindenberg, former Wimbledon champion Michael Stich and Cecilia Braekhus will present the collection over the next couple of months. The First Lady wore a leather vest with special freedom motives when the collection was unveiled in Berlin´s famous Hotel Adlon, which is right on the former death strip.
After November 9 – the day the wall came down – the clothes will be auctioned off. “It is something very special to wear history on your own body,” Braekhus said. “I have been living in Berlin for more than a year now and of course I have studied the city´s history carefully. I really love Berlin and I cannot imagine it used to be separated by a wall.”
Arthur Abraham, Ulli Wegner to act in Max Schmeling movie
Undefeated IBF middleweight champion King Arthur Abraham and Ulli Wegner made a brief trip to Zagreb this week where the shooting for the Max Schmeling movie has begun. With Henry Maske impersonating one of the biggest German sporting heroes of all time, Abraham will play Richard Vogt, Schmeling´s last opponent. Just as in real life, Ulli Wegner will be in his corner. “It is a great honour and pleasure for both of us to be a part of this movie,” King Arthur said. “Working at the set is almost as hard as a training session. But it was a lot of fun.” The movie will hit cinemas in 2010.
Abraham (29-0, 23 KOs) took only a quick time-out from the preparation for his June 27 defence against Mahir Oral, which will be staged in Berlin´s Max-Schmeling-Halle. “This was a nice break from the hard training routine,” Ulli Wegner said. “We really enjoyed it. But now our full attention is back on the next fight. Arthur is in great shape and he will delight his fans on June 27.”