Sunday, July 20, 2008 was a watershed day for The Superbike World Championship as the wildly competitive production-based globetrotting series reached the 500 race mark in the second leg at the 3.357-mile, 13-turn Automotodrom Brno circuit in the Czech Republic. The ninth round of the 2008 championship series, Troy Bayliss of the Ducati Xerox outfit certainly outshined all others on the historic day, handily winning both 20-lap races. Seemingly back on from, it was the reigning World Champion’s first victories in three months time.

In leg number one — the 499th World Superbike round in the property’s history — Bayliss and his Ducati 1098 FO8 wound up in a three-way battle for the lead with Yamaha Motor Italia’s Troy Corser and Sterilgarda Go Eleven’s Max Biaggi. However, at the 13-lap mark, Bayliss eased away from the fray and simply motored way to win the race by 1.468 seconds over Troy Corser. Former four-time 250cc World Championship winner Max Biaggi held sway in third as the race reached it s twilight stage, but was passed by Troy Balyliss’ teammate Michel Fabrizio on the white flag lap to round out the podium. Biaggi crossed the finish line a disappointing fourth, while Hannspree Ten Kate Honda’s Ryuichi Kiyonari was fifth, a mere .34 seconds behind the Italian. Yamaha Motor Italia’s Nori Haga placed sixth overall.

Then came Hannspree Ten Kate Honda’s Carlos Checa, by himself, with Suzuki Alstare’s Yukio Kagayama holding off Hannspree Ten Kate Honda’s Kenan Sofuoglu for ninth.

When the bikes idled up to the grid up for the 500th round of the World Superbike Championship, Bayliss was hoping to bookend the afternoon with a double race sweep. And once the race did, in fact begin, it turned into a two-rider dogfight between Bayliss and Ducati Xerox teammate Michel Fabrizio. Right from the onset, Bayliss took off like a scalded cat, leaving the race for second place between Fabrizio and Biaggi. While Bayliss won the 20-lapper by .928 seconds, Fabrizio and Biaggi went at it hammer and tong, Fabrizio passing Sterilgarda Go Eleven Ducati’s Max Biaggi on the final lap and beating him back to the line by an eye blink margin of a few tenths of a second. Fourth place was granted to Yamaha Motor Italia’s Troy Corser and fifth to Alstare Suzuki’s Max Neukirchner. With five rounds yet to be run, Bayliss’ two-win day in Brno combined with Neukirchner’s fifth leaves Bayliss with a 79-point lead in the 2008 World Superbike Championship Series. Troy Corser is third, 91 points adrift of the leader. Carlos Checa stands fourth, 94 points back and Nori Haga fifth, just five points behind Checa.

Eric Johnson