Stieglitz vs. Ekpo: Winner, Scorecard and Analysis

WBO super middleweight champion Robert Stieglitz (46-3) easily defended his title on Saturday in his home country of Germany. The 32-year-old who was born in Russia but resides in Magdeburg, Sachsen-Anhalt, Germany easily outboxed Isaac Ekpo (22-2) en route to a unanimous decision win.

His jab and work rate were the keys to winning an uneventful bout.

Per BoxRec.com, the three official judges had the fight scored as follows: Waleska Roldan 118-110, Andre Van Grootenbruel 118-110, Frank Michael Maass 119-109.

Despite his sparkling record, Stieglitz isn’t known as the most dynamic performer. Facing an awkward opponent like Ekpo didn’t make this fight any more aesthetically pleasing. Ekpo is one of those fighters that could probably make any opponent look boring. Usually, Stieglitz doesn’t need any help in that regard.

Fighters Rated tweeted about his losing battle with the Sandman while watching Stieglitz-Ekpo.

Even without a spectacular knockout or noteworthy showmanship, Stieglitz did what he almost always does: Win.

This was the second successful defense he's has had since he regained his title from Arthur Abraham in March. While he doesn’t get his name mentioned often when top-flight 168-pound fighters are discussed, Stieglitz has had a solid year. The win over Ekpo was his fourth in 2013 with no defeats.

The question for Stieglitz is if he can handle some of the bigger names at 168 pounds. BoxRec.com has him listed as the No. 2 super middleweight in the world. With Andre Ward having been removed because of inactivity, Stieglitz is second only to WBA and IBF champion Carl "The Cobra" Froch. 

Ward is back in action against Edwin Rodriguez on Nov. 16. If he wins and re-establishes control of the WBA Super World super middleweight title, then he’ll likely vault Stieglitz in the rankings.

Could Stieglitz handle Froch or Ward? German sports reporter Carolin Bluechel doesn’t like his chances against Froch, or George Groves, the Cobra’s opponent on Nov. 23.

This was undoubtedly a solid win for Stieglitz, but he still has a ways to go to silence the doubters.

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