Russian Cruiserweight Soslan Asbarov Hit With Six-Year Ban For Anti-Doping Violation
Soslan Asbarov was dealt a mighty blow to his once-promising career.
The unbeaten cruiserweight was hit with a six-year suspension for violation of Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) policy. Test samples collected from an Oct. 28th bout with Aleksei Papin came back positive for an unspecified banned substance.
Asbarov was previously credited with a ten-round, unanimous decision win over his countryman in Moscow. Russia Boxing Federation manager Dmitry Antonov confirmed to The Ring that the verdict was changed to a No-Contest on April 15 per verification of the test result.
Antonov was not permitted to confirm the substance in question due to confidentiality clauses in place with RUSADA’s testing policy. RUSADA officials would only confirm to The Ring that the result was first discovered last Dec. 22, and later verified.
“RUSADA rendered the decision that made athlete Soslan Asbarov ineligible for six years,” a RUSADA spokesperson confirmed to The Ring. “The decision [was made] on April 15, 2024, with credit for the served period of provisional suspension [backdated to] December 22, 2023.”
Asbarov is currently rated No. 8 at cruiserweight by The Ring, though that will soon change.
The 32-year-old boxer was found in violation of RUSADA Anti-Doping rules 4.1 (Presence of a Prohibited Substance or its Metabolites or Markers in an Athlete’s Sample) and 4.2 (Use or Attempted Use by an Athlete of a Prohibited Substance or a Prohibited Method). Both clauses leave athletes fully responsible for any substance discovered in their system.
The development crushes the early momentum for the two-year pro who was fast-tracked to contention.
Asbarov’s second pro win was an eight-round shutout of veteran knockout artist Dmitry Kudryashov in Sept. 2022.
Just six months later came a win over another cruiserweight bruiser. Asbarov outlasted Brandon Glanton in a ten-round majority decision last March 18 in Dubai. For now, it remains his last victory to date.
Asbarov floored Papin in the second round of their Oct. 28 clash en route to a ten-round, unanimous decision. The feat saw him crash The Ring’s rankings, while Papin was dropped from the top ten. The matter is now under vote by The Ring Ratings Panel, with Papin expected to re-enter upon this week’s update.
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.
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