Second-half goals by Nacho Martinez, Medina Piti and Franco Vazquez guided Rayo Vallecano to an emphatic 3-0 victory over Levante as they ended 2012 with two consecutive victories.
Martinez opened the scoring just before the hour and Piti struck 10 minutes from time, both goals coming from fine strikes, before Vazquez pounced.
Victory guided Rayo to two points behind Levante who had been in a strong vein of form coming into the game with six wins and two draws from their past 10 Primera Division matches, their only defeats coming against Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Rayo started the match in 10th, five points and four places behind their visitors, with both teams having taken three points in their previous outings.