From the pole Tarquini was the only Alfa Romeo driver capable to take a good start, while his team-mates Colciago and Larini almost stalled their engines. This enabled Giovanardi, García and Jörg Müller to jump on Tarquini’s tail in second, third and fourth positions. Ruberti’s Alfa was the only car which couldn’t start, due to a broken driveshaft. 

On the first lap Couto’s Honda collided with Nilsson’s Volvo, crashed into the wall and retired. The Tarquini-Giovanardi-García trio pulled away, while there was a fierce five-car fight for the fourth position. On lap 2 Larini overtook Jörg Müller for fourth, while Colciago, Dirk Müller and Priaulx were running nose-to-tail. On lap 3 Jörg Müller recovered the fourth place, while Coronel, Diefenbacher and Rydell were closing on the group. Larini and Jörg Müller continued to swap positions. 

On lap 5 Dirk Müller overtook both Priaulx and Colciago, moving up to sixth. At half distance, Giovanardi was putting pressure on Tarquini, who played defense. On the seventh lap Diefenbacher spun and lost his tenth position. Larini lost two places to Dirk Müller and Priaulx, slipping down to seventh. On the ninth lap Huisman and Rydell clashed while fighting for the eleventh place; Huisman crashed into the wall and Rydell went back to the pits. 

Tarquini managed to win the race – his first success in an Alfa Romeo car since that in the 1996 ITC Silverstone round – with a very narrow margin over Giovanardi and García. Three more BMW drivers – Jörg Müller, Dirk Müller and Priaulx – were classified behind them. Larini came home in seventh, and Coronel managed to overtake Colciago on the last lap, stealing him the eighth place, the last point and the pole position for the second race. Coronel also won the Independents’ race, from Balzan and Francia.

Huisman’s BMW and Couto’s Honda were missing on the grid after their Race 1 crashes. Ruberti took the start from the pit-lane after the Clever Cats R&M crew changed another brohen driveshaft. 

A group of BMW drivers fought for the lead at the start, while Nilsson’s Volvo went off and rolled in the gravel. The Swedish car did not suffer from serious damages: “The handling wasn’t good after a Race 1 collision, and suddenly I found myself driving sideways and went off,” Nilsson explained. Dirk Müller was leading from Jörg Müller, Priaulx, Coronel and Giovanardi. Larini, in sixth, was the first Alfa Romeo man, and he was chased by García, Tarquini and Colciago. On the second lap Giovanardi and Larini overtook Coronel. 

On the third lap Larini passed his former team-mate moving up to fourth; Tarquini overtook García for seventh and closed on the Larini-Giovanardi duo. Dirk Müller built a small margin, leaving Jörg Müller in the throes of Priaulx. Palomeras retired with gearbox problems. On the seventh lap Diefenbacher retired when a front wheel collapsed, while Francia stole ninth place from Colciago. On the ninth lap, Tarquini overtook Giovanardi for fifth and then Larini for fourth. Gené retired on the tenth lap, due to transmission problems. 

Dirk Müller beat Jörg Müller and Priaulx in the final sprint, the three of them finishing within four tenths of a second. Tarquini was classified fourth in front of Giovanardi who had overtook Larini on the last lap. García and Coronel claimed the two last point positions, with the Dutchman repeating his Race 1 success amongst the Independent drivers. Francia obtained a very good ninth place, while Rydell broke into the top tens overtaking Balzan and Colciago. The Swedish driver performed an excellent recovery after he started from the back of the grid, and so did Ruberti, who was classified 13th.