With a fine curtain of rain squalling down on the Ravehill pitch there was little chance of a running game from either side.
Handling was difficult and errors were high in a match where both kickers David Humphreys and Wasp's Kenny Logan took centre stage.
Pity Logan facing the Ulster outhalf on such form. Not only did Humphreys kick an incredibly 37 of Ulster's 42-point haul but with it he broke the record for the most points scored in a Heineken European Cup match and also registered the most points scored in an Ulster match.
It was Ulster's second successive victory following their narrow success in Treviso last week - their first ever against English opposition in the Heineken Cup - it left Wasps desperately hoping for a series of unlikely results to have any chance of reaching the knock-out stages.
Humphreys has often dominated a rugby match, but never to this extent. The Dungannon player could do little wrong from, from immaculate control in the first half as Ulster faced the wet and wind, to a breathless second half of kicking where the team emerged from 13-6 down to run away with the match.
"It was a fantastic team performance," said Humphreys. "Not too many (kicks) tonight were very pretty but a lot of them went over."
Gary Longwell was less inhibited about his colleague.
"I've been playing with Davy for a long time now; the man's a genius. He's a match winner."
Lions and Irish winger Tyrone Howe also praised Humphreys. "I don't think any of us has seen him so good," he said.
Not even the most partisan Ulster supporters could have foreseen the shape of a match, that included four drop goals, six penalties, a conversion and a try from Humpheys and a late touch down from Tyrone Howe.
The battling pack were the platform from which Humphreys was given his opportunities.
The front row of Simon Best, Paul Shields and Justin Fitzpatrick stood up to everything Wasps could produce and tirelessly worked the coal face.
Wasps, with Kenny Logan not kicking well, went into the second half with a seven-point lead but that looked a little short given the conditions.
Humphreys replied straight away with three penalties and a drop goal in the opening eight minutes to take the score to 15-16. And he never stopped. By 66 minutes he had taken the game to 31-19 after a heroic block and try before a professional finish.
Scoring sequence: 12 mins: K logan pen 0-3, 13: D Humphreys pen 3-3; 19: W Green try, Logan con 3-10; 33: Logan pen 3-13; 40: Humphreys pen 6-13. Half-time. 41: Humphreys pen 9-13; 43: Humphreys pen 12-13; 47: Logan pen 12-16; 48: Humphreys drop gl. 15-16; 56: Humphreys pen 18-16; 60: Humphreys dp gl. 21-16; 63: Humphreys dp gl 24-16; 66: Logan pen 24-19; 66: Humphreys try and con 31-19; 70: Humphreys pen 34-19; 74: Humphreys drop gl. 37-19; 78: T Howe try 42-19.
ULSTER: P Wallace; J Topping, S Stewart, J bell, T Howe; N Doak, R Nelson; J Fitzpatrick, P Shields, S Best, G Longwell, J Davidson, T McWhirter, A Ward (capt.) Replacements: M Blair for Davidson (50 mins) .
WASPS: J Lewsey; L Scrace , F Waters, M Denny (capt), K Logan; A King, M Friday; C Dowd, P Greening, W Green, S Shaw, I Jones, M Lock, R Jenkins, J Worsley. Replacements: D Molloy for Greening 60 mins; T Leota for W Green 62 mins. M Leek for King 78 mins. Yellow cards: A Ward (Ulster), D Molloy (Wasps) 73 mins
Referee: G De Santis
