Henrik Larsson and Spanish League top scorer Samuel Eto'o scored for Barcelona while Racing secured a point through efforts from Antonio Ramiro and Oscar Serrano.

Barcelona captain Carles Puyol was sent-off deep into the injury time after collecting his second booking of the game. He will miss Barca's next game against Villarreal.

Despite the draw, Barcelona still have a comfortable 11-point lead at the top of the standings with 70 points while Santander are 14th on 34 points.

The title holders grabbed the lead in the 17th minute when Mark Van Bommel released Larsson inside the box before the Swede sent a superb finish home.

Racing equalized two minutes later when Serrano crossed for Ramiro who beat Barca keeper Victor Valdez to score.

In the 22nd minute, Serrano turned scorer when he latched on to a long ball from Melo and drilled left-footer past Valdez.

Eto'o scored his 23rd league goal in the 33rd minute when he volleyed a venomous shot past the Racing keeper to level the score line.

In other matches, Sevilla tied Real Zaragoza 1-1, Espanyol and Athletic Bilbao held Atletico Madrid and Real Mallorca respectively with the same result while Deportivo Alaves lost at home to Osasuna 2-1.