Monza is very much the home of Ducati, and the fans, while passionate about their racing and eager to embrace anyone they can see as a hero on the track, are nothing if not fiercely partisan. So while Regis Laconi will have gained some credit for putting his Fila Ducati on pole, but by far the biggest cheer was reserved for championship leader Frankie Chili who rode his ancient 998 to third place in Superpole behind Honda mounted Chris Vermeulen and Nori Haga. James Toseland rounded off a distinctly lacklustre qualifying with sixth place behind Leon Haslam.

Race 1

Fate has a cruel sense of humour, and Frankie, psyched up and ready to roll, had the disatrous misfortune of having his engine undergo what is technically referred to as catastrophic self disassembly before even reaching the first turn of the warmup lap. As a result the local hero had to start from the pit lane on his spare bike, putting him squarely at the back of the field.

A straightforward start saw everyone get through the first chicane and pull cleanly through Curva Grande. At the back, Chili had already made up 4 places and was going well, while at the front Laconi, Vermeulen, Haga and Toseland were battling away, with Laconi clearly getting the better and opening a gap.

Four laps in and fate demonstrated just how cruel she can be. Frankie Chili's engine let go in spectacular style, consigning the popular veteran to the sidelines in his home race. But it wasn't just Frankie who took an early bath. Haga, Martin and Sanchini joined a total of 10 retirements as the long fast straights and high temperatures took their toll.

Up at the front and while Laconi was simply clearing off, Vermeulen was dropping back and Toseland was consolidating second place. The two Foggy Petronas bikes, with new engines and vastly improved cooling, were going well and making ground. In fact, both finished in the top 10, which considering that they both exploded last year was quite an achievment.

So Laconi took the race from Toseland with McCoy in hot pursuit. A fading Vermeulen managed to stay just ahead of Leon Haslam and Sergio Fuertes on the Suzuki pipped Borciani to the line by just a tenth of a second. Walker and Corser came in 8th and 9th with the top 10 rounded out by Bontempi on another Suzuki.

Race 2

Frankie Chili isn't a man to take defeat lying down, and the second race saw him back on his trusty 998 and absolutely flying. While Laconi had taken his customary position at the front this time dogged by Vermeulen with Toseland and McCoy just behnd, Chili was right up there with the pack. A clean but very aggressive move saw him pass McCoy at the Ascari chicane and he then climbed all over the back of Toseland's bike for a couple of laps before getting past and making it stick. But all for naught, though, as a few laps later his race ended in the gravel trap by the Parabolica while closing on Vermeulen.

Toseland and McCoy were having the mother of all races, swapping places and fighting hard right until the end, while Haga had a similarly dismal weekend with another failed engine. Haslam rode a lonely race between the battle ahead and the FPR of Troy Corser behind, while Walker and Borciani fought hard, the Ducati rider coming out ahead of the Brit who was followed home by Steve Martin and the pair of Kawasakis.

But things aren't always straightforward, and you should never forget post even scrutineering. That's why the results are announced as 'provisional' until afterwards. Chris Vermeulen and the Ten Kate Honda team won't forget that in a hurry as the young Aussie was disqualified when his bike failed a post race scrutineering check. Ironically, the failure was a safety issue rather than a performance one - a trip switch that should kill the engine if the bike falls over didn't do so - but the result was the same. Everyone behind Vermeulen moved up a place.

So, overall a masterly display of riding by Regis Laconi, and a disappointing performance from James Toseland, but some great racing and, in true Italian style, some high drama as well. Next stop Oschersleben, where hopefully Frankie Chili will have some better luck...

Race one Results:

1 Regis Laconi (Ducati Fila);
2 James Toseland (Ducati Fila) +9.800;
3 Gary McCoy (Xerox Ducati) +11.891;
4 Chris Vermeulen (Ten Kate Honda) +34.055;
5 Leon Haslam (Renegade Ducati) +38.021;
6 Sergio Fuertes (MIR Racing) +41.980;
7 Marco Borciani (DFX Racing) +42.117;
8 Chris Walker (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) +42.405;
9 Troy Corser (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) +44.983;
10 Piergiorgio Bontempi (Zongshen Suzuki) +57.215;

Race Two Revised Results:

1 Regis Laconi (Ducati Fila);
2 James Toseland (Ducati Fila) +18.281;
3 Gary McCoy (Xerox Ducati) +19.403;
4 Leon Haslam (Renegade Ducati) +34.611;
5 Troy Corser (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) +40.665;
6 Marco Borciani (DFX) +41.256;
7 Chris Walker (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) +42.485;
8 Steve Martin (DFX) +48.936;
9 Mauro Sanchini (Kawasaki Bertocchi) +49.012);
10 Ivan Clementi (Kawasaki Bertocchi) +51.042

Revised Championship Points:

1 Regis Laconi 120;
2 James Toseland 113;
3 Pierfrancesco Chili 97;
4 Gary McCoy 87;
5 Chris Vermeulen 83;
6 Nori Haga 69;
7 Chris Walker 69;
8 Marco Borciani 68;
9 Troy Corser 66;
10 Leon Haslam 64

Manufacturer standings (after 4 of 11 rounds):

1 Ducati 200;
2 Petronas 90;
3 Honda 83;
4 Kawasaki 48;
5 Suzuki 47;
6 Yamaha 22