Haga out-duels Edwards in race two.

Yamaha rider Noriyuki Haga was at his spectacular best at Hockenheim on Sunday afternoon, snatching victory away from Colin Edwards at the last moment to give both himself and his Yamaha team a much needed boost.

The race had been another thrilling encounter with the same seven riders pulling clear at the front in the early stages. The Honda twins of Edwards and Aaron Slight were there as were race one winner Troy Bayliss on his Ducati. Suzuki were represented by Pierfrancesco Chili and Kawasaki has Akira Yanagawa to cheer for. Troy Corser was also present, riding the wheels off his underpowered Aprilia but keeping with the lead group. In the opening three laps of the fourteen lap race the front seven were joined by the second Aprilia of Alessandro Antonello and the Gerin Ducati twins, Andy Meklau and Robert Ulm, although the latter trio could not keep pace with the leaders and soon dropped back.

As in race one Edwards, Bayliss, Haga, Chili and Yanagawa pulled clear of Slight and Corser and as in race one, the leading quintet were trimmed to a leading quartet before the end of the race. On this occasion, the unlucky rider was Yanagawa whose motor developed a terminal smoking problem just after he had taken the lead on lap 10.

This left Haga in the lead as the race entered its' final 4.22 mile lap. The Japanese rider had shadowed Edwards for a large portion of the race and knew where the Honda had an advantage over his Yamaha. Haga tried to pull out a lead on the run down to the Jim Clark chicane and by the Ostkurve it looked as though he had done enough to break the tow of the following Edwards and Bayliss.

As the leaders began the return leg of the circuit, Edwards wound his machine up to bursting point and blasted into the lead as the train entered the stadium section. Edwards looked comfortable but Haga had other ideas, moving to the outside at the Sachskurve. Edwards dived to the inside and the pair made slight contact, Bayliss tried to go round the outside and made it three wide through the middle of the turn only to have the crafty Chili take his space away. Somehow Haga moved underneath the Honda on the exit of the Sachskurve and held the line through the following kink and round the final turn to take the win. Edwards was second while Chili held off Bayliss for the final podium spot.

Slight finally got the better of Corser for fifth but both were out of the picture by mid distance. Antonello rode the second Aprilia very impressively to seventh place just beating off Meklau and Ulm. Katsuaki Fujiwara rounded out the top ten on the second factory Suzuki.

Full report and complete times to follow.

Hockenheim race 2 result.

1. Noriyuki Haga JAP Yamaha.
2. Colin Edwards USA Honda.
3. Pierfrancesco Chili ITA Suzuki.
4. Troy Bayliss AUS Ducati.
5. Aaron Slight NZ Honda.
6. Troy Corser AUS Aprilia.
7. Alessandro Antonello ITA Aprilia.
8. Andreas Meklau AUT Ducati.
9. Robert Ulm AUT Ducati.
10. Katsuaki Fujiwara JAP Suzuki.