Hodgson does the double in Italy

Neil Hodgson claimed a seventh and eighth consecutive victory at Monza in Italy today.

The first race was a historic event as it marked Ducati’s 200th victory. Hodgson has also surpassed the six consecutive wins of Tory Bayliss last season.

Both wins were aided by the speed of the Ducati 999, which regularly reached 305kmh on the main straight. The Ducati rider was fairly comfortable in the first race, but faced stiffer opposition in the second, with Gregorio Lavilla, Regis Laconi and Pier Francesco Chili all in the leading back. Hodgson finally took the lead with a lap to go, and despite the best efforts of Lavilla on the Suzuki, the Brit managed to hold the lead to the line.

The second race saw Hodgson struggle with a slipping clutch dropping down to 9th place during the race but he managed to power back to take the race in the final laps.

It was also a good round for James Toseland who managed a consistent fourth in both races.

Hodgson’s team-mate Ruben Xausn took race one in seventh place but the second race saw him loose the front end close to the finish. The Ducati rider was uninjured but is very uncomfortable after his second crash of the weekend.

Foggy Petronas riders James Haydon and Troy Corser both got black flagged in the second race after the team decided to change the fuel settings for more top speed resulting in large jets of flames coming off the rear of the bikes.

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