Sturm retains WBA title
Photo by Sumio Yamada

July 6, 2008 - HALLE, GERMANY (TICKER) —Felix Sturm left little doubt this time around.

Photo Gallery Felix Sturm Vs. Randy Griffin

The German retained his WBA middleweight title Saturday, winning a 12-round unanimous decision over Randy Griffin.

Nine months after fighting the American challenger to a surprise draw, Sturm (30-2-1, 13 KOs) eventually set the record straight in their second meeting with the judges ruling it 116-113, 116-112 and 118-110 in his favor.

“I owed Randy the rematch and it really was a great fight,” Sturm said. “That is what the sport of boxing needs - fights like this. He has my full respect for his performance.”

The 29-year-old controlled much of the action, cleverly picking Griffin (24-2-3, 12 KOs) apart with his jab.

Griffin proved his heart as he constantly marched forward and tried to unload heavy combinations, but most of his shots were absorbed by Sturm’s defense.

Sturm made good impact with his left jab which constantly found its target. It did little to stop Griffin, who kept coming at his opponent but found himself on the wrong end of several fast counter-punches.

Griffin had his moments, especially in the third when he connected strongly, but failed to make significant impact in the following as Sturm was too versatile to be caught.

Sturm turned it on in the 11th round when he landed a few big lefts and rights but Griffin refused to give in. Both fighters then exchanged punches in the final round - and both raised their arms after the final bell.

Griffin was disappointed with the clear verdict, especially of the judge who called the bout 118-110.

“That difference is outrageous,” he said. “I thought this fight was much closer to a draw than the first one,” he added. “Maybe we can do a third fight, maybe in the US.”

After 12 entertaining rounds in October 2007, Griffin surprisingly earned a draw against the German title-holder, with the judges scoring it 117-114, 114-114 and 114-115.

Sturm now has 120 days to defend the title against mandatory challenger Sebastian Sylvester. The European middleweight champion earned the world title shot by knocking out former champion Javier Castillejo, who lost the title to Sturm in the 12th round during their April 2007 clash.