Brighton & Hove Albion returned to the top of the Sky Bet Championship after coming from behind to beat Fulham as Newcastle United suffered a shock defeat at Blackburn Rovers.
The Seagulls' unbeaten run, which now stands at 18 matches, looked to be ending when Lucas Piazon gave the Cottagers the lead 10 minutes into the second half.
But Brighton hit back with two goals in two minutes as Tomer Hemed levelled from the penalty spot before Lewis Dunk headed in a 75th-minute winner.
Meanwhile at Ewood Park, Charlie Mulgrew was the scourge of Newcastle as his precise 74th minute free-kick gave struggling Rovers a superb 1-0 win.
It was a battling win for the home side who relied on a number of stunning saves from keeper Jason Steele to deny the Magpies, who also had two goals disallowed and struck the woodwork.
Reading FC remain third but are now just six points behind Newcastle after coming from behind to win 3-2 at Bristol City.
Tammy Abraham's brace, the second coming from the penalty spot, put City in control but Liam Kelly gave Reading a lifeline before Yann Kermorgant struck twice late on to complete the comeback.
Leeds United recorded a comfortable 3-0 victory over Rotherham United at Elland Road - Kyle Bartley's far-post header early in the second half broke the deadlock before Chris Wood's double sealed the win.
Nelson Oliveira's hat-trick guided Norwich to an emphatic 3-0 win over Derby County that eased the pressure on manager Alex Neil.
The Canaries had taken just seven points from their previous 11 games but Oliveira completed the perfect treble with a goal each with his left foot, right foot and head.
Joe Ralls scored the only goal as Cardiff edged out Aston Villa 1-0 while Tom Clarke's goal in first-half stoppage time was enough for Preston North End to beat Burton Albion.
However, Birmingham City's poor form under Gianfranco Zola continues as they slumped to a 3-1 defeat at home to Brentford.
They took a first-half lead through Lukas Jutkiewicz but Scott Hogan equalised before missing a penalty before David Davis deflected a Ryan Woods free-kick past his own goalkeeper and substitute Nico Yennaris added a late third.
Conor Hourihane hit a superb 88th-minute winner to maintain Barnsley's play-off push with a 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest but South Yorkshire rivals Sheffield Wednesday had to settle for a goalless draw at home to Wolves.
And finally, Pawel Wszolek scored a late QPR winner for the second game running as they beat Ipswich 2-1 at Loftus Road.
Idrissa Sylla's first-half opener for the Hoops was cancelled out by Tom Lawrence's stunning 25-yard equaliser before Wszolek struck with seven minutes remaining.
Full Championship Results (Monday, January 2)
Leeds United 3-0 Rotherham United
Birmingham City 1-3 Brentford
Bristol City 2-3 Reading
Burton Albion 0-1 Preston North End
Cardiff City 1-0 Aston Villa
Fulham 1-2 Brighton & Hove Albion
Blackburn Rovers 1-0 Newcastle United
Norwich City 3-0 Derby County
Nottingham Forest 0-1 Barnsley
QPR 2-1 Ipswich Town
Sheffield Wednesday 0-0 Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wigan Athletic 0-1 Huddersfield Town
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