AUSSIE Troy Corser wrestled the World Superbikes championship from the grip of East Lancashire's Carl Fogarty.

Fellow countryman Anthony Gobert took the first double of his career in Sunday's final round of the Championship at Phillip Island in Australia.

Blackburn-based Foggy - needing a miracle to retain his title - could only manager fourth and sixth places to finish fourth in the campaign's standings.

Fogarty reurns to the Ducati team next season, with whom he won his two world titles, after a disappointing season with Honda. Gobert won the first race after a duel with Colin Edwards and Castrol Honda's Aaron Slight, but New Zelander Slight - needing to finish in front of Corser to keep the title chase alive - crashed out at Siberia on the 13th of 22 laps as he challenged Gobert for second place.

Third place for Corser was enough to take the title and although he started the second race of the day he spent the first nine laps pulling wheelies for the crowd, pitted then returned to entertain further.

While Corser put on a spurt Gobert and Slight fought out victory with the Kawasaki rider getting the edge, passing Slight into the first corner on the final lap.

Second place also gave Slight second in the final championship standings with Edwards completing the race two rostrum in third.

"My second race plan to follow Anthony was working," said Slight. "But when I wanted to make a move in the last five laps my tyres were sliding around too much. It's not that bad finishing second in a race like that." Burnley's Neil Hodgson failed to finish the first race, his race ending after 11 laps, and was 12th in the second.

Race one result: 1 Anthony Gobert, Australia (Kawasaki), 2 Colin Edwards, USA (Yamaha), 3 Troy Corser, Australia (Ducati), 4 Carl Fogarty, GB (Castrol Honda), 5 Peter Goddard, Australia (Suzuki), 6 Wataru Yoshikawa, Japan (Yamaha), 7 John Kocinski, USA (Ducati), 8 Pier-Francesco Chili, Italy (Ducati), 9 Mike Hale, USA (Ducati), 10 Kirk McCarthy, Australia (Suzuki).

Race two result: 1 Anthony Gobert, Australia (Kawasaki), 2 Aaron Slight, New Zealand (Castrol Honda), 3 Colin Edwards, USA (Yamaha), 4 Mike Hale, USA (Ducati), 5 John Kocinski, USA (Ducati), 6 Carl Fogarty, GB (Castrol Honda), 7 Wataru Yoshikawa, Japan (Yamaha), 8 Peter Goddard, Australia (Suzuki), 9 Pier-Francesco Chili, Italy (Ducati), 10 John Reynolds, GB (Suzuki).

Final World Championship points: Corser 369, Slight 347, Kocinski 337, Fogarty 331, Edwards 248, Chili 223.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.