Sykes at the double in Italy

tomsykes

The reigning world champion set a track record at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli in qualifying on Saturday, and continued his dominance by claiming maximum points to take firm control at the leaderboard summit.

Sykes, of Kawasaki, pulled away from team-mate Lloris Baz in the day's first race, crossing the line over five seconds quicker than the Frenchman.

Aprilia's Marco Melandri completed the podium, 6.417 seconds off the leading pace, while Ducati's Chaz Davies was fourth (+7.783secs).

Melandri's team-mate Sylvain Guintoli, second in the overall standings, finished fifth (+16.248secs) to claim 11 points as Sykes increased his advantage.

And Sykes then completed a perfect weekend by storming to victory in the second race, with Baz once again his nearest challenger.

Baz came home 3.083 seconds slower than his team-mate, just getting the better of Melandri (+3.413secs), who ensured a repeat podium result.

Guintoli showed a slight improvement second time round with a fourth-placed finish, while Honda's Jonathan Rea came home fifth.

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