Motorcycling: Edwards delights in Monza double

COLIN EDWARDS won both yesterday's rounds of the World Superbike Championship at Monza - after four years without tasting success in the series.

The American won the opening race from Castrol Honda team-mate Aaron Slight after the pair had pulled away from a group of six riders. Edwards took the lead from Slight on the fourth lap and held off a late challenge from the New Zealander to win by 0.083sec.

The duo looked set to battle out the second race until Slight suffered an engine failure at the start of the last lap, with Britain's Carl Fogarty taking second spot behind Edwards after Troy Corser ran wide and into the gravel at the final corner.

Japan's Noriyuki Haga still leads the standings, despite finishing only ninth and 10th having been injured during a crash in practice on Saturday.

Yamaha team-mates Steve Hislop and Niall Mackenzie robbed each other of victory in a dramatic eighth round of the Motor Cycle News British Superbike Championship at Snetterton yesterday as they touched with the flag in sight.

Hislop, who had won the seventh round with ease by four seconds from defending champion Mackenzie, made the early running in the delayed second race. At one point Hislop was three seconds ahead, but was reeled in by the charging Mackenzie.

Then as Mackenzie tried to nudge ahead at the chicane on the final lap, the Yamahas touched.

Their demise allowed Terry Rymer to take his and Sony Suzuki's first victory of the season ahead of Kawasaki's Chris Walker.