FIM Superbike World Championship - Round 9 - Brno

Monday 23 July: Round 9 of 14 in this, the 25th Anniversary Year of World SBK.

Superbikes: Race 1 - Running battle goes the way of Melandri

Marco Melandri

Marco Melandri (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) posted an impressive win in the first race at Brno after he had worked his way through from a mid-pack position in a race that started with many wet patches on the circuit, but finished in blazing sunshine. Long time leader Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) finished second and his team-mate Loris Baz third, the first podium place for the teenage French rider.

Any chance Sykes had of getting back at Melandri for the win was dashed when he and Jonathan Rea (Honda World Superbike Team) collided entering a corner near the end of the race and Rea crashed out spectacularly.

Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) was fourth and Eugene Laverty (Aprilia Racing) fifth, with Max Biaggi a distant sixth on his Aprilia Racing machine.

Double Delight for Marco and BMW

Marco Melandri

Marco Melandri (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) scored a double today after winning the second 20-lap race of the weekend at Brno. The Italian rider made a final pass on long time leader Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) on the final lap and had just enough of a gap on Sykes on the final few corners to make sure the English rider would finish second, by only 0.140 seconds.

Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) had an eventual third place finish with championship leader Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing) a lonely fourth. Eugene Laverty (Aprilia Racing) won a duel for fifth place with Chaz Davies (ParkinGO MTC Racing Aprilia) and Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport).

In the championship fight Biaggi now has 271.5 points, Melandri has 250.5 and Sykes moved into third place, on 212.5 points. Checa is fourth on 204.5.

Supersport: Tense race won by Foret after red flag drops again

Fabien Foret

A red flag incident on the startline led to two starts for the 18-lap FIM Supersport Championship race at Brno, but even more drama was to come when the race was halted by another red flag a few laps from the end. Even though Fabien Foret (Kawasaki Intermoto Step) had just been passed by Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki Lorenzini), the French rider won on the count back to the previous lap, with Broc Parkes (Ten Kate Racing Products Honda) third.

Fourth was Sam Lowes (Bogdanka PTR Honda) with Jules Cluzel (PTR Honda) fifth and Ronan Quarmby (PTR Honda) sixth, despite being the rider who crashed out. In the championship points, Sofuoglu leads Lowes 137 to 114, and Foret is third with 108.

Superstock 1000: Staro' wins his second in a row

STK1000

Bryan Staring (Team Pedercini Kawasaki) won his second consecutive Superstock 1000 FIM Cup race after splashing through the rains in unstoppable fashion at Brno. He left Eddi La Marra (Barni Racing Team Italia Ducati Panigale) to break away from a group behind to try and hunt him down, but as the danger approached Staring upped the pace and finished 6.5 up on La Marra. MRS Kawasaki rider Jeremy Guarnoni finished third, if 32 seconds behind Staring.

Sylvain Barrier (BMW Motorrad Italia GoldBet) fell and no scored, which means that in the championship fight La Marra is now the leader on 94 points, Barrier has an unchanged 75 and Staring is now third on 70 points.

Superstock 600: Top four covered by 0.9 seconds after 11-laps

Michael van der Mark

Michael van der Mark (EAB Ten Kate Junior Honda) scored his third win of the season after a thrilling 11-lap Superstock 600 race at Brno, having overcome the close attention of three other riders. Gauthier Duwelz (MTM Yamaha) finished only 0.125 seconds from van der Mark after battling hard with him for the final few laps.

Riccardo Russo (Yamaha Team Italia FMI) went third and another fast qualifier, Alex Schacht (Schacht Racing SBK ONE Honda) completed the top four, just 0.900 seconds from a win of his own.

In winning the race van Der Mark moved to the top of the championship, by only two points from Russo, 124 to 122. Each of these riders has three wins apiece in 2012. Duwelz is third on 78 points.

KTM European Junior Cup: Wimmer the EJC victor at Brno

Lukas Wimmer took the victory in the fifth round of the KTM European Junior Cup at Brno, his second race win of the season so far.

He was only 0.295 seconds ahead of Spaniard Gaston Garcia and just over a second up on third place rider, Javier Orellana. Wimmer has 70 points and the championship lead, Orellana is second on 62 and Christian Vidal has 48 points, in third, sharing that total with Jean Francois Demoulin.