Max Neukirchner moved into contention at the sharp end of the World Superbike standings after claiming victory in race one at Misano.
The Alstare Suzuki rider is up to second place in the riders' standings behind long-time leader Troy Bayliss after his second win of the season was followed by a seventh place in race two, which was won by Sterilgarda Ducati's Ruben Xaus.
Ducati Xerox ace Bayliss came home in third in both races to ensure his lead at the top remains a healthy one, with the Australian on 259 points, 49 clear of Neukirchner.
Carlos Checa, Bayliss' nearest challenger at the start of the weekend, is third on 207 points.
Neukirchner's victory in race one was earned the hard way, the German rising steadily from 10th place on the grid to tussle with the leaders with 10 laps remaining.
Having dispatched Bayliss for third he made light work of passing Xaus before also going past Troy Corser on the Yamaha Motor Italia, holding off a renewed challenge from the experienced Australian on his way to taking the flag.
The race was marred by a big shunt involving Italian duo Max Biaggi and Michel Fabrizio when the latter mistimed a lunge up the inside of his compatriot.
Race two was restarted on lap three after a huge engine failure for DF Racing's Karl Muggeridge which left oil on the track.
Subsequently, Australians Bayliss and Corser found their way to the front and with 10 laps remaining the former ducked under his compatriot for the lead.
On lap 17 Xaus passed Corser for second place, making his move on Bayliss just two laps later before easing away to his first win of the season.
A late blunder by Bayliss allowed Biaggi through to complete a famous Sterilgarda one-two.
"It was really hot here today like every year," Bayliss said afterwards. "I had been feeling good all weekend and was feeling confident before Race 1. We had chosen a hard tyre which we thought would be good but then I struggled throughout the race."
"I can't take anything away from Neukirchner and Corser though as they rode a great race. After Race 1 we changed the tyre for the second race, thinking that was the problem, and that was as a bit better but it was still difficult and towards the end I was losing grip with the rear."
"Again I take my hat off to the guys ahead of me, Ruben and Max (Biaggi), who did a fantastic job. I can say that the day has been one of the hardest of my career, but in the end we've gained more points. I'd have liked to have done better today but there you go."
San Marino SBK Race 1
1. Max Neukirchner (Germany) Suzuki, 39'27.918 (154,197 kph)
2. Troy Corser (Australia) Yamaha, +0.542
3. Troy Bayliss (Australia) Ducati, + 2.249
4. Ruben Xaus (Spain) Ducati, +3.028
5. Carlos Checa (Spain) Honda, + 5.408
6. Lorenzi Lanzi (Italy) Ducati, +5.518
7. Jakub Smrz (Czech Republic) Ducati, +6.202
8. Gregorio Lavilla (Spain) Honda, +18.279
9. Shinichi Nakatomi (Japan) Yamaha, +19.072
10. Noriyuki Haga (Japan) Yamaha, +19.132
11. Yukio Kagayama (Japan) Suzuki, +28.098
12. Fonsi Nieto (Spain) Suzuki, +34.385
13. Shuhei Aoyama (Japan) Honda, +34.572
14. Ryuichi Kiyonari (Japan) Honda, +34.902
15. David Checa (Spain) Yamaha, +39.979
16. Sebastien Gimbert (France) Yamaha, +44.669
17. Roberto Rolfo (Italy)