Eurosport - Mon, 07 Apr 12:40:00 2008

Lorenzo Lanzi and Noriyuki Haga claimed victory in the two World Superbike races at Valencia, while Troy Bayliss consolidated his position as championship leader with a pair of second-place finishes.

RACE ONE

Lanzi (pictured) inherited an extraordinary victory after the front two riders crashed on the final corner.

Suzuki's Max Neukirchner had led the entire race after starting on pole, but was taken out as Ten Kate Honda man Carlos Checa attempted a heroic last-gasp overtaking manoeuvre.

The move failed and both men ended in the gravel, handing victory to the disbelieving Lanzi, who led home fellow Ducati Troy Bayliss and Yamaha's Troy Corser.

Checa remounted to claim fifth place, sandwiched between Fonsi Nieto and Karl Muggeridge.

The German Neukirchner appeared destined for an easy win after building a commanding lead, but was reeled in by Checa, who was roared on by a partisan Spanish crowd.

The track claimed a large number of victims, with Haga, Ruben Xaus, Yukio Kagayama and Sebastien Gimbert, heavily, among those crashing out, while Max Biaggi's hopes were ended after running wide.

Ducati have been threatened with a weight penalty if their dominance of the series continues, and the Italian manufacturer somehow managed a one-two despite being outclassed for most of the race.

1 - Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati)
2 - Troy Bayliss (Ducati) +2.987
3 - Troy Corser (Yamaha) +7.287
4 - Fonsi Nieto (Suzuki) +11.992
5 - Carlos Checa (Honda) +12.824
6 - Karl Muggeridge (Honda) +13.125
7 - Gregorio Lavilla (Honda) +13.191
8 - Regis Laconi (Kawasaki) +13.906
9 - Makoto Tamada (Kawasaki) +17.254
10 - Roberto Rolfo (Honda) +18.606

RACE TWO

Having fallen earlier, Haga finally kicked his 2008 season into gear with a pulsating win in the second race.

The Japanese Yamaha rider was expected to contend for the title but managed no better than ninth in the first five races of the year.

However, he finally showed his pedigree, holding off Bayliss, while Checa made partial amends for his earlier indiscretion by finishing third. Neukirchner, however, did not even make the grid for race two.

Ryuichi Kiyonari, Troy Corser and Yukio Kagayama completed the top six, while Ruben Xaus managed to hold off Max Biaggi in an entertaining battle for seventh.

Although the veteran Australian Bayliss was unable to add to his tally of three wins from the first four races of the season, he extended his championship lead to 48 points over Nieto.

1 - Noriyuki Haga (Honda)
2 - Troy Bayliss (Ducati) +1.551
3 - Carlos Checa (Honda) +2.903
4 - Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) +7.277
5 - Troy Corser (Yamaha) +8.051
6 - Yukio Kagayama (Suzuki) +9.223
7 - Ruben Xaus (Ducati) +10.164
8 - Max Biaggi (Ducati) +10.614
9 - Regis Laconi (Kawasaki) +17.234
10 - Fonsi Nieto (Suzuki) +18.100