Havik expecting challenge to hold onto Six Day Berlin lead

Thanks to a lung busting sprint finish from Havik's partner Wim Stroetinga in the final 45-minute Madison chase, the Dutch duo currently top the leaderboard in Germany.

They have close company though with familiar Six Day names Moreno de Pauw and Kenny de Ketele level on laps and points, while British duo Chris Latham and Andy Tennant are just two points behind.

Any possible victory in Berlin would be a Series highlight for the pair after fifth and sixth place finishes in London and Amsterdam, respectively.

But Havik knows there is plenty of time for the standings to shuffle around – although he and Stroetinga will be doing their level best to stay out front.

"We took a lap in a very good moment. I'm very surprised because we didn't have that much points yesterday," he said.

"They next days will be very tough as we are still very close together. Kenny de Ketele and Moreno de Pauw are still equal with us, the English guys are just two points back, so a lot of things can still happen.

"But now we try our best. I love the new concept of the Six Day Series. The races are shorter, so it's full gas racing every day."

It had taken a while for Havik and Stroetinga to come to the fore on Day Two, with Australian's Tirian McManus and Josh Harrison making the early moves in the opening 30-minute Madison – eventually holding out for the win.

"We thought we better take it while we can, when there was a dip in the pace, we went for it, hit it hard, then battled home," said McManus.

Stroetinga then showed his strength with a second-place finish in the 40-lap Derny before he and Havik were beaten by Alex Rasmussen and Casper Pedersen in their 500m Madison time trial heat.

But they stayed in the mix the rest of the night before Stroetinga held off de Pauw in the final straight of the final Madison to take the lead.

In the sprinter's competition, Maximilian Levy beat both the pain and his rivals to take the lead.

The four-time German World Champion suffered a broken collarbone in a crash just two weeks ago but went wheel to wheel with compatriot Robert Forstemann again on Friday night.

Levy once again won the fastest flying 250m time trial before Forstemann prevailed in the final.

But with the latter only managing fifth in the final keirin of the night, it was Levy, in third, who took the overall lead.

"The public here is once again first class, and that helps with the pain," he said. "During the race I don't feel a thing. It's going really well and I hope I can keep it up over the next days."

Sportsbeat 2017