Melandri and Biaggi taste victory

Added on Sunday, June 19th, 2011 by Carole Nash Editor | No Comments

Marco Melandri and Max Biaggi conquered the Aragon circuit in Spain this afternoon, taking one World Superbike victory each.

After earning his first WSB pole position in qualifying yesterday, Melandri was fired up for a strong opening race. Holding the advantage on the grid gave the Yamaha World Superbike rider the upper hand, however tough competition in the form of Biaggi made sure he earned the place.

Melandri’s chance for his second WSB victory came when Biaggi fell within touching distance of the chequered flag, allowing Yamaha to take to the top step of the podium. Just 1.5 seconds later Biaggi took second place, with his Alitali Aprilia teammate Leon Camier completed the podium in third place.

Eugene Laverty won the battle for fourth after fighting it out with Tom Sykes, with the pair finishing just millimetres apart across the finish line. Sixth place went the way of Noriyuki Haga, ahead of Joan Lascorz in seventh and Ayrton Badovini. The final two spots in the top ten were awarded to Leon Haslam and WSB veteran Troy Corser.

A long start to the season has seen Max Biaggi miss out on victory up until now. Race two finally saw him take to the top step of the podium, as he scored his first victory of the 2011 season.

A reverse in fortune saw Melandri chase Biaggi across the finish line this time around, with a slightly larger gap separating the two after Melandri ran off track moments from the end.

Local hero and championship leader Carlos Checa revived himself from race one to finish third, and also strengthen his lead in the standings. Michel Fabrizio worked his way through to fourth place, with Lascorz fifth, Laverty sixth and Haga seventh.

With three places up for grabs in the top ten it was Camier, Haslam and Badovini who made their mark in eighth, ninth and tenth.

After their trip to Spain Checa is still in charge of the championship standings with 261 points, Biaggi is second with 218 and Melandri has slotted into third place with 195 points.

The next round is at Brno in the Czech Republic on the 10th July.

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