Ben Spies bounced back from his opening-race disappointment to claim victory in race two of the FIM Superbike World Championship meeting at Monza.
The American led from start to finish to cross the line 2.665 seconds ahead of race one winner Michel Fabrizio, with Ryuichi Kiyonari coming home third.
The victory was even sweeter for Spies as championship leader Noriyuki Haga crashed out at the end of the third lap to see his advantage at the top of the standings cut. The Press Association
The drama for Spies was part on an eventful opening race at the Italian circuit which had to be stopped when five riders fell in two separate spectacular incidents going into the first corner.
Spies forced his way to the front at one-thirds distance and, running at lap record pace, looked set for victory despite the close attentions of Fabrizio.
The second race proved straightforward with Spies, starting from pole for the fifth time, leading throughout to take his fifth victory of the season.
“We had to re-group – it was a hard one to get over after what happened in the first race,” said Spies, who is now 54 points behind overall leader Haga who crashed out of the second race on the fourth lap.
“However, this is a long track and weird things do happen.” UK Express
After he dropped from first to 15th in race one, American Spies bounced back to dominate the second race from start to finish, leaving his rivals standing in the opening laps.
His fifth race win of the season came after Ducati Xerox’s points leader Noriyuki Haga crashed at the Parabolica on lap three after he was hit by a bird, boosting the Texan’s title chances.
Haga’s team-mate Michel Fabrizio is now a credible title candidate after crowning his Italian weekend with an excellent second place. Yahoo! Eurosports
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