Dean Stoneman made it two wins in four as he stormed to victory in the most exciting GP3 race of the season.

Having finished an impressive fifth in race one on Saturday, Stoneman started from the second row of the grid alongside championship leader Alex Lynn.

As the lights went out, the 24-year old made a blistering start down the inside and into the lead as the gaggle of cars entered turn one.

The passionate Italian F1 crowd was then treated to a royal battle as Lynn tried everything in vain to get past the rapid 2010 F2 Champion.

Two laps later, Stoneman was passed. But with his trademark flair the Southampton driver regained the lead before producing some of the best driving of his career.

He opened up a small lead of around 0.7 seconds over Lynn, increasing to 1.5 seconds towards the end of the epic, 17-lap battle.

Stoneman’s third win of the season - a fortnight after his victory in Belgium - completed another productive weekend in his first season of international racing since making a full recovery from cancer.

“That has to be one of the longest races of my career,” he said. “I made a great start and managed to get in front and I knew he (Lynn) wasn’t going to be far away.

“He kept me really honest and we battled hard whilst giving each other lots of space. It was a great and enjoyable battle.

“I was always determined to get this one and fought hard and wasn’t going to give up the lead for anything.”

Stoneman remains eighth in the GP3 Series but has closed the gap on second to 28 points, with Lynn a further 50 points ahead.

The penultimate weekend of the GP3 season takes place at the brand-new circuit in Sochi, Russia on October 10-12.