James Toseland resurrected his flagging World Superbike Championship lead with a 2 podium finishes at Brno on Sunday, and credited the HANNspree Honda team for the extensive work they have done on the electronics for his return to form.

Heading to the Czech Republic with a 21-point lead over reigning champion Troy Bayliss, James knew that it was imperative to get back on that podium, and in practice was delighted to find that the Honda was a frontrunner once more.

Banishing the bad memories of Misano, he came out on top of a thrilling four-way tussle with Noriyuki Haga, Max Biaggi and Yukio Kagayama, swapping places numerous times before the Ten Kate-run Honda moved into the lead on lap ten. Toseland then proceeded to keep his rivals at bay for the second half of the 20-lap race, stealing victory from Max Biaggi after a nail-biting head-to-head in the final minutes. This was his first victory since race one at Assen last April..

Troy Bayliss predicted that he would struggle on his Xerox Ducati and he was right. He was running in tenth place when Karl Muggeridge crashed and his sliding bike hit Bayliss knocking him off.

"After Misano, we all understood that it was very important for us to get things back on track," team boss Ronald ten Kate admitted, "We had two productive tests in Brno and Vallelunga, where we got the PI system on the machine again for the electronic side of things. It has paid off today and we are definitely competitive again."

The second race of the day saw another battle between Toseland and his Italian rival. After seeing off Haga, the duo played cat and mouse until the final lap, but in the end it was Biaggi who clinched the victory. However, a second place finish was more than enough to extend Toseland's championship total to 305 points and, with Bayliss managing only a single sixth place from the two races, he now enjoys a 43-point lead over Brno rival Biaggi in the standings.

Roberto Rolfo, team-mate to Toseland in the Hannspree Ten Kate Honda team had a good run to fifth place. Reigning World Champion Troy Bayliss on the Xerox Ducati finished in sixth just ahead of his young team-mate Lorenzo Lanzi. Lanzi lead the race for one lap during the unsure early moments before dropping back to seventh.

The only PSG-1 Kawasaki to finish in the top ten was that of Fonsi Nieto in eighth place. Shinichi Nakatomi took a second top ten finish with a ninth place and Ruben Xaus on the Sterilgarda Ducati completed the top ten.

"After Misano, these two races were pretty big," Toseland insisted, "We had fallen behind on electronics, but we knew what the problems were and we sat down and figured out what we needed to do. Since the tests, things have just got better and better. Thanks to the team and the PI people - it's meant going from third and fifth place to second and third. I feel like we are back in the game again and it's nice to draw a line under it all."

Troy Corser had just set the fastest lap in race two when he was forced out with a mechanical problem. Earlier, he was seventh in the first race.

"This weekend just hasn't been mine,” said a frustrated Corser. “I came here looking for a win but it wasn't to be. In race one, we had tyre grip issues as we've had all weekend and I just couldn't make the pace.

“We changed bikes for race two as well as the set-up and it felt much better; a definite improvement. Everything was looking good when it all went wrong and I know I would've been on the podium if that bolt hadn't broken."

Corser remains fifth in the championship – and that’s where he will probably end his challenge. Bayliss is 58pts in arrears, and 41 ahead of sixth-placed Italian Lorenzo Lanzi

Lets look forward to a couple of superb races when SBK returns for the next round at Brands Hatch on August 5.

WSB Results Race 1

1 Toseland
2 Max Biaggi
3 Yukio Kagayama
4 Haga
5 Rolfo
6 Fabrizio
7 Corser
8 Lanzi
9 Neukirchner
10 Nakatomi

Race 2

1 Max Biaggi
2 Toseland
3 Fabrizio
4 Haga
5 Rolfo
6 Bayliss
7 Lanz
8 Nieto
9 Nakatomi
10 Xaus

Championship Points

1 Toseland 305
2 Max Biaggi 262
3 Haga 260
4 Bayliss 249
5 Corser 191
6 Lanzi 150
7 Xaus 140
8 Rolfo 1319 Neukirchner 111
10 Yukio Kagayama 105