Matthieu Pavon continued his faultless Omega Dubai Desert Classic campaign to join Alvaro Quiros at the top of the leaderboard.
The Frenchman hit a blemish-free 66 on Thursday to sit one shot off overnight leader Matthew Fitzpatrick and he maintained his fine form at the Emirates Golf Club with five birdies through 12 holes.
Qualifier Callum Shinkwin and Finland's Kim Koivu were just one adrift of the leaders at ten under, with the latter still having six holes to play.
World Number Five Bryson DeChambeau was at nine under after eight holes of his second round alongside Paraguay's Fabrizio Zanotti, Australian Lucas Herbert and Fitzpatrick, with a group of eight players one shot further back.
Starting on the back nine, Pavon rolled in his first gain of the day at the 11th before picking up more shots at the 13th and 17th to move to nine under par.
Pavon found the green in two at the par-five 18th before hitting a lengthy putt to concessional range for another birdie and when he carded his fifth gain of the round at the second, he was joint leader at 11 under par with six holes left to play.
Spaniard Quiros has not been in the winner's circle since victory at the Rocco Forte Open - Vendura, Sicily in May 2017 but put himself in pole position to end that drought with an eight-under-par second round.
Quiros began his round with a bogey but immediately hit back with successive gains before picking up another shot at the fifth and a superb eagle two at the eighth to turn in 31.
The 36 year old gained another shot at the 14th before finishing his round with a trio of birdies to set the clubhouse target.
Shinkwin only qualified for the event earlier in the week after the 25 year old secured one of three available spots in the field by winning a 36-hole shootout and he made the most of his opportunity.
The Englishman carded birdies at the third and fifth to make an early move to eight under but gave them shots back at the sixth and ninth. However, gains at the 10th, 12th, 13th and the last helped him up to second.
Finn Koivu remains blemish-free after 30 holes in Dubai, hitting birdies at the 13th, 17th, 18th, first and third in his second round to join Shinkwin for tied second.
Zanotti turned for home in 31 to sit one stroke further back and Herbert joined him after starting his second round with an eagle-birdie-birdie before adding further gains at the 16th and the first.
DeChambeau hit a terrific approach from a bunker at the third to rescue a birdie, only for the American to hand that shot back at the next but he worked his way back into contention with three successive gains from the sixth - which included a stunning second shot at the eighth from the dirt track following a wayward drive.
Earlier in the day, Fitzpatrick picked up where he left off with a blemish-free back nine, after starting on the tenth, to move into the lead at ten under par following three gains, but was soon joined by Belgian Detry who had a birdie blitz of his own - picking up six shots on his first nine holes.
Detry briefly took sole lead with his seventh gain at the first, only for Fitzpatrick to join him at the top after he birdied the third and when the Belgian recorded his first bogey of the tournament at the fourth following a wayward tee and short chip, the Yorkshireman was in the lead on his own.
Detry then made it three successive bogeys to tail away but Fitzpatrick missed chances to extend his lead before finding water with his tee to the seventh and lipped out his bogey putt to hand Quiros the initiative.
