Two goals in the opening seven minutes from Jose Paolo Guerrerostruck and Eljero Elia looked to have put the visitors on the road to victory, but Wolfsburg turned the tables with second-half goals from Zvjezdan Misimovic and substitute Obafemi Martins.

Hamburg kept their nerve: two goals from Mladen Petric and Romeo Castelan gave the northern club a crucial victory to move them to joint top of the Bundesliga.

"We were playing against a very strong Hamburg side," said Wolfsburg goalkeeper Diego Benaglio while teammate Misimovic complained about their lack of concentration in the first half.

The win means Hamburg move level at the top on seven points with Bayer Leverkusen and Schalke. Leverkusen claim the top spot on goal difference after thrashing Freiburg 5-0 on Saturday. Schalke were held to a goalless draw at Hoffenheim.

Last season's Bundeliga champions Wolfsburg are now in fourth place on six points after Sunday's loss. It was Armin Veh's first league defeat as coach. Newly-promoted Mainz were the surprise winners against Bayern Munich, securing three points against last season's runners' up.

In other matches Sunday, Werder Bremen beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 3-0 thanks to two goals from Claudio Pizarro and a late goal from Naldo. It could have been 4-0 but Mesut Ozil missed a penalty.

VfL Bochum clocked up their first win of the season as a second-half goal from team captain Anthar Yahia secured a 1-0 victory over Hertha Berlin.

"These boys can play football and they did that today with a passion," said Bochum coach Marcel Koller. "We need to continue playing with the same determination if we are to enjoy more wins."

On Saturday, Borussia Dortmund and VfB Stuttgart both dropped valuable points after playing out a 1-1 draw, Hanover 96 beat Nuremberg 2-0 and Frankfurt were held to a goalless draw against Cologne.

nrt/dpa/Reuters/AFP

Editor: Mike Durrie