Welcome to the most unpronouncable place on the SBK calendar. Oschersleben is a fairly new addition to the fixture list, hosting the Superbike Circus for the first time in 2000. It may be of some interest to note that of the 10 races that have so far taken place there, half were won by Colin Edwards, whose 2002 lap record still stands. It is a tight and fairly technical circuit - a huge difference to Monza with it's long fast straights and sweeping bends - and should suit the bikes with slightly less power as well as being a great handling test.

Qualifying and practice threw up little in the way of drama, although Ducati Fila may not agree. Regis Laconi had 2 crashes, neither of them serious in terms of injury but one catastrophic in terms of race potential. All superbikes are fitted with a tilt switch that kills the engine in the event of a crash. It was the failure of this switch to work as advertised at Monza that resulted in the disqualification of Chris Vermuelen and his Honda. On this occasion, though, when Laconi's Ducati slid through the gravel the switch didn't trip and the engine kept running. It is unfortunate that it worked perfectly in the pits afterwards and appears simply to be a fluke resulting from the way the crah happened. But rules are rules and there ad to be a penalty. Although falling short of disqualification, Laconi's drive through penalty (where the rider has to pull into the pit lane and ride through it, keeping to the speed limit, within the first 5 laps) will surely put a major dent in his podium aspirations for the first race.

Race 1

Nori Haga got off the line fast and cleanly, hotly pursued by Toseland, Chili and Laconi. And, um, that's about it for excitement in this race. Laconi pulled into the pits on lap 5 for his penalty and rejoined in 16th position. Chris Walker was doing well until a total electrical failure put him out of the race and Haga simply gave a demonstration ride. long gone, it seems, is the banzai sliding of old, replaced by a mature, smooth and devastatingly fast style that suits the vee twins. Troy Corser's 4th place is worthy of note as the FP-1 sems to be getting better and better, as is wildcard entry Jürgen Oelschläger's 8th, but other than that the race was uneventful and rather processional.

Race one wasn't very exciting to watch but with Toseland coming in just a fraction of a second ahead of Chili and Laconi finishing well down it certainly opened the championship back up.

Race 2

The start was very much a repeat of race 1, with Haga streaking off ahead of Laconi, Toseland and Chili. Troy Corser was firmly attached to the back of the group until an oil leak lubed his rear tyre enough to put him into the barriers ina nasty looking but fortunately injury free crash. Steve Martin had a horribly long and drawn out highside, ending with the ultimate insult of the bike picking itself up and running straight and true beside the track before smashing itself to pieces against the barrier. Frankie Chili, struggling for grip and unhappy with the performance of his Pirelli tyres, overcooked it and parked his Ducati in the gravel. But the unluckiest guy of the race must be Nori Haga. With a commanding lead and looking all set for the double he was comfortably holding off Laconi when the engine of his Renegade Ducati let go. No drama, no smoke but unfortunately no power either.

Laconi, not being a man to turn down a gift like that, cruised home to a comfortable win a huge 38 seconds ahead of team mate James Toseland who still retains the lead in the championship, albeit by just 2 points. But that elevated rookie Leon Haslam to the podium - his first ever - the day before his 21st birthday.

Further down the field a fantastic scrap between McCoy, Nannelli and Sanchini was decided in favour of the Australian who has clearly done the opposite to Haga and adapted his bike to suit his sideways style rather than vice versa. Chris Walker brought the surviving FP-1 home 7th for valuable points ahead of a struggling Chris Vermuelen.

Oschersleben won't go down in history as one of the most exciting rounds ever, though it had it's moments. But it could be the start of the closest fought championship for many years.

Race one Results:

1 N Haga, Ducati
2 J Toseland, Ducati
3 P-F Chili, Ducati
4 T Corser, Foggy-Petronas
5 S Martin, Ducati
6 R Laconi, Ducati
7 Leon Haslam, Ducati
8 J Oelschläger, Honda
9 G McCoy, Ducati
10 M Sanchini, Kawasaki

Race Two Results:

1 R Laconi, Ducati
2 J Toseland, Ducati
3 Leon Haslam, Ducati
4 G McCoy, Ducati
5 G Nannelli, Ducati
6 M Sanchini, Kawasaki
7 C Walker, Foggy-Petronas
8 C Vermuelen, Honda
9 I Clementi, Kawasaki
10 A Meklau, Suzuki

Revised Championship Points:

1 James Toseland 157
2 Regis Laconi 155
3 Pierfrancesco Chili 113
4 Gary McCoy 107
5 Nori Haga 94
6 Chris Vermeulen 92
7 Leon Haslam 89
8 Troy Corser 79
9 Chris Walker 78
10 Steve Martin 73

Manufacturer standings (after 4 of 11 rounds):

1 Ducati 250
2 Petronas 112
3 Honda 99
4 Kawasaki 64
5 Suzuki 56
6 Yamaha 26