Kieron Dyer and Sammy Amoebi scored with 5 mins of each other early in the match and despite a more and more desperate effort to get bacxk on terms City were only able to come up witgh a consolation goal from Aron Gunnarsson.
That was in the 67th minute and after that Cardiff pushed forward more to leave themselves exposed and it made for an exciting spectacle that became frantic in the 5 mins of added time.
The 'Boro keeper produced some stunning save and City missed chances that looked like certain goals. One from Fraiser Campbell saw him head the ball into the ground and over the bar from less than 5 yards out.
It was a welcome win for Middlesbrough but for Cardiff, who still lead the Championship by 5 points with a game in hand, it means they can start to feel the breath of Hull on the back of their necks after the Tigers won 5 - 2 at home to Birmingham.
City's lead over Watford in 3rd place is 7 points and we also have a game in hand over The Hornets.
Next up City face Derby at CCS on Tuesday night. Let's hope for a better set of results than we've seen this weekend.