FONTANA, Calif. -- Sam Hornish Jr. won a sensational 20-lap battle with Jaques Lazier at the end of the inaugural Yamaha 400 at California Speedway on Sunday, taking the record-setting race by less than a car-length.

The 200-lap event on the wide, 2-mile oval was competitive throughout, with an Indy Racing League record 39 lead changes among eight drivers. The end belonged to Hornish and Lazier, though, as they raced within inches of each other at close to 220 mph lap after lap.

	Sam Hornish celebrates his second win of the year.

"With five laps to go, it didn't matter who was going to win it," said Hornish, the 22-year-old defending IRL champion and current points leader. "It was going to be a great race. It was just fun."

Hornish, winning his second race in three starts this season and the fifth of his Indy-car career, took the lead from pole-winner Eddie Cheever Jr. on lap 180, with Lazier coming up fast behind those two.

The 31-year-old Lazier, a two-time winner last year, had problems with his fuel system and had to make up ground after each of his pit stops. With a 26-lap green-flag run at the end, though, he was able to make a strong run, passing Cheever for second and then going around Hornish for the lead on lap 183.

Cheever moved past Hornish for second and challenged Lazier for several laps before his car suddenly began spewing white smoke, veered to the bottom of the track and slowed on lap 191, leaving the battle to the other two drivers.

Lazier appeared to have enough to hold off Hornish, who was able to pull alongside several times but couldn't get past. Finally, though, on lap 199, Hornish barely slipped by on the outside lane to take the lead right at the finish line.

Lazier wouldn't give up, though, pulling alongside and even moving back ahead in Turn 2 before Hornish drove to the outside and pulled even on the backstretch.

As they neared the finish line, Lazier's right front tire touched Lazier's left rear, but they somehow kept going without incident as Hornish won by 0.028-seconds.

"We weren't sure if we had enough to get him there at the end," Hornish said. "I knew the only way I could get a run at him was on the outside because he was hugging that white line.

"With about 15 laps to go, I tried to figure out a way to get by him on the outside. I kept trying different ways through the turns on the outside. Two laps from the end, I figured out the right way to get it done."

When Lazier got back by Hornish at start of the last lap, Hornish said he thought he was in trouble.

"When he went back by me in Turn 2 I thought, 'It's over with now,"' he said. "He just got back by me, but I just kept my foot in it and it worked out for us."

"Obviously, there was a lot of side-by-side racing," Lazier said. "Sometimes, it was three-abreast in the corners. That was nerve-racking sometimes, especially when the cars ahead of you start to slide up. What an incredible race. It was just amazing from my perspective."

The winner's average speed of 179.345 mph broke the IRL record set of 175.276 by former Panther Racing driver -- Hornish's predecessor -- Scott Goodyear in 2000 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Hornish led a race-high 73 laps, followed by Lazier's 45 and Cheever's 33.

There were only four caution flags in the race, and only one crash, but it was a scary one.

Cheever's rookie teammate Tomas Scheckter led 28 laps and was a threat to win the race until he began to experience engine problems and slowed on lap 164. Hideki Noda slammed hard into the rear of Scheckter's car, sending both crashing into the concrete wall.

Noda was taken to nearby Loma Linda Medical Center for X-rays after complaining of back pain. The X-rays were negative and the Japanese driver was released.

Rookie Laurent Redon, a Frenchman making only his third IRL start, wound up a career-best third, beating Penske Racing drivers Gil de Ferran and Helio Castroneves, as well as last year's top rookie, Felipe Giaffone, in another competitive battle to the finish.

Hornish now leads Castroneves, the winner two weeks ago in Phoenix, by 21 points and de Ferran, who had finished second in the first two races of the season, by 29.