RACE 2: MÜLLER WINS, FARFUS LEADS

His BMW Team Germany colleague Augusto Farfus followed him and winner of race one, Félix Porteiro completed the top three. Farfus now leads the championship with 53 points, ahead of Müller with 49 and Andy Priaulx with 45.

Yvan Muller, who should have lined up third, did not start due to problems with his gearbox.

Alain Menu got a great start from pole and went into turn one with a solid gap from the rest. Behind him, Alex Zanardi promoted himself to third and on lap two overtook Gabriele Tarquini for second.

Zanardi and Menu were then involved in an incident that resulted in Menu ending up in the gravel. Zanardi, who had to pay a ten second stop-and-go penalty due to a breach of the rules of parc fermé before the race, came back and after he left the stop-and-go bay pitted to change a wheel damaged in the collision.

Tarquini held the lead for SEAT Sport until the next lap when Farfus and Müller passed him. On the same lap Porteiro overtook Nicola Larini for fifth.

Larini came home sixth and was the only Chevrolet to finish, after Menu's off and Huff going to the garage in lap three. He now lies fourth in the championship as the best of the non-BMW drivers. Tarquini finished in fourth spot followed by James Thompson of N.technology Alfa Romeo.

Priaulx had a stunning race coming from 22nd on the grid to claim two important championship points from 7th. By lap four the Briton was 10th but his progress was stalled when he had to pass the defending SEAT duo of Jordi Gené and Tiago Monteiro. On lap eight he successfully did so.

Gené took the final point by passing the chequered flag eighth.

Stefano D'Aste claimed the independent win and is now joint second with fellow countryman Luca Rangoni, 7 points behind Pierre-Yves Corthals.