Davies wins race two, Rea made to wait

Race two victory for Chaz Davies forces Jonathan Rea to wait for 2015 World Superbike title.
Davies wins race two, Rea made to wait

A thrilling last-corner victory for Chaz Davies in race two at Sepang prevented Jonathan Rea from wrapping-up the 2015 World Superbike title.

Rea gobbled up a near two-second advantage on the last lap to slipstream past Davies on the long run to the final hairpin.

Davies then dived for the inside under braking, the pair making contact before powering to the finish line, where the Ducati rider claimed victory by 0.091s!

A twelfth win of the season in race one had given Rea the first of seven chances to wrap-up the 2015 world championship: To do so the Ulsterman needed to outscore both Kawasaki team-mate Tom Sykes (by 11 points) and Davies (by 1 point) in race two.

While Sykes was eliminated from contention by a turn one tangle with Max Biaggi, Davies - narrowly denied victory by Rea earlier in the day - was soon dominating up front.

By the time Sykes suffered another incident, a lowside fall at turn nine with eleven laps remaining, the Welshman's Ducati was enjoying a 'safe' lead over Rea.

Tyre wear had played a pivotal role in the race one outcome, but Davies looked to be out of Rea's reach... until Rea's last lap charge created what Davies would describe as a "fun" final showdown.

Jordi Torres completed the podium for Aprilia ahead of Pata Honda's outgoing champion Sylvain Guintoli. Their respective team-mates Michael van der Mark and Leon Haslam completed the top six.

Rea now leads new closest rival Davies - winner of three of the last four races - by 144 points, with a maximum of 150 points remaining heading into Jerez on September 20th.

Sykes, who eventually finished the race in 14th, is now 157 points adrift and therefore out of mathematical title contention.

Read More