IT was billed as a 'must-win' local derby - and for the first half of it, the Buildbase Bees looked like they would lose it comprehensively.
But fortunately meetings are raced over fifteen heats rather than seven, and their welcome comeback turned this into a fascinating contest with the right result in the end.
It was a night which saw Simon Stead step things up with one of his best performances for the club, whilst Olly Allen made a crucial return from injury and supplied the first moment of hope with a winning tactical ride.
The effervescent Ben Baker probably had more downs than ups in his seven rides, but recorded the massive high of defeating GP star Fredrik Lindgren, and that was probably the moment at which the self-belief began to transfer across the pits.
Skipper Chris Harris rode through the pain barrier for paid-nine, including some important team-riding, and Rory Schlein was involved in two 5-1s after a disastrous start to the meeting.
Wolverhampton, who had trailed 22-14 when the lights went out earlier in the season, clearly sensed their first away win of the season and their initial display was nigh-on perfect.
Lindgren trailed Allen for the bulk of Heat 1 before finding a way through off the final corner, with Harris protecting a shared race for the Bees by rounding Ales Dryml on lap three.
But the pattern for the opening races was set in Heat 2 when Nicolai Klindt charged clear to win in a fast time, with partner Kenneth Hansen holding on under pressure from Barker until the Bees' reserve fell at the end of the second lap.
Wolves' only setback came when Niels-Kristian Iversen broke the tapes in Heat 3, and Bees worked a perfect 5-1 in the re-run with Stead riding well alongside Barker to block out Dryml, with Iversen unable to make an impression from the handicap.
But then Schlein missed out from gate four in Heat 4 and was left behind Klindt and David Howe - and Lindgren's good second bend move on Stead in Heat 5 helped Wolves into a six-point lead.
Bees would have hoped to take points back in Heat 6 but Howe had started the meeting in excellent form, and he drove firmly back inside Allen going into lap two after being initially overtaken around the outside.
And Coventry were facing the prospect of home humiliation when Klindt and Iversen dominated Heat 7 from the start ahead of Schlein and an out-of-sorts Andreas Messing.
Once again the tactical ride was required and again it came up trumps, Bees gambling on using it as early as possible and the move being justified with Allen winning Heat 8, although Wolves would still have been satisfied with second and third places.
However, things began to get more interesting with a 5-1 from Stead and Schlein in Heat 9 as Howe overshot the first corner and almost hit the fence on turn two.
It gave Bees a glimmer of hope but Iversen fended off Harris to win Heat 10 and Wolves' three-point lead still looked relatively secure, especially with Lindgren in three of the last five races.
But the situation changed completely in Heat 11 when Lindgren gated but went too wide on turn two to allow an inspired Barker to shoot through on the inside.
The youngster then rode four near-perfect laps under increasing pressure for a brilliant win, and Schlein's third place narrowed the gap to a single point.
Wolves were now being asked questions, but it was the Bees who had the answers in Heat 12 as Stead rode a terrific first lap to get the better of Iversen, who found himself under threat from Barker in the early part of the race after the reserve had sailed past Klindt on the back straight.
That put Bees into an unlikely lead, and they took a big step towards victory with a somewhat unexpected 5-1 in Heat 13, Harris and Schlein both making good starts and squeezing out Lindgren going into the first bend.
The team-riding had to be spot-on, and it certainly was with Harris riding a particularly clever final bend to hold off an opponent who clearly had more speed.
All of a sudden it was Bees' meeting to win, and they had the on-form Allen to call upon for Heat 14 as rider-replacement. He didn't disappoint either, not quite making the start but riding a good outside line to pass Hansen and then hold off Klindt for the remainder of the race, therefore protecting Bees' five-point lead with Barker unable to pass Hansen.
Nothing was taken for granted before the last race and Bees were reluctant to risk Allen for two rides on the trot given his shoulder injury.
All they needed was a finisher from the race, and it turned out to be another good race with Stead gating only for Lindgren to dive through on the inside with a quality passing move.
But Stead's two points were enough even with Harris at the back, and Bees could breathe a mighty sigh of relief as they moved two points further forward in the League and also ever-nearer to the key date of August 1.
BUILDBASE BEES 48 Chris Harris 1* 1* 2 2* 0 = 6+3 Olly Allen 2 2 6^ 1* 3 = 14+1 Simon Stead 3 2 3 3 2 = 13 Billy Janniro Rider Replacement Rory Schlein 1 1 2* 1 3 = 8+1 Andreas Messing 1 0 0 = 1 Ben Barker F 2* 0 0 3 1 0 = 6+1
