REIGNING world champion Carl Fogarty won the first race of today's World Superbike round at Monza while his team mate Aaron Slight finished second in both 18-lap races to take the championship lead.

The two nail-biting races were won by Fogarty and Italian Pier-Francesco Chili after epic, five-way tussles in both races around the 3.6-mile circuit. Fogarty, Slight, Chili, Australian Troy Corser and American Colin Edwards did battle in one of the best day's racing the series has ever produced.

After winning race one Fogarty said: "I just went for it on the last lap. Got the lead at the first chicane and rode absolutely nuts, I was sliding everywhere. I only knew it was the last lap because the crowd and marshals were leaning over the fences."

Fogarty pipped Slight with Edwards getting the verdict for third after crossing the line, in line with Corser and Chili. But hard-riding Italian Chili hit back with second race victory from Slight and Fogarty.

"I had three strategies for the last lap and was forced to use the third one," said Chili who ran across the chicane on the last lap almost colliding with Slight then Fogarty. "It is always nice to win in Italy, the fans are fantastic."

First race result: 1 CARL FOGARTY, GB (Castrol Honda) 32m 30.739s, 191.669kmh, 2 Aaron Slight, New Zealand (Castrol Honda) 0.650s, 3 Colin Edwards, USA (Yamaha) 1.018s, 4 Pier-Francesco Chili, Italy (Ducati) 11.180s, 5 Troy Corser, Australia (Ducati) 1.031s, 6 NEIL HODGSON, GB (Ducati) 11.180s

Second race result: 1 Pier-Francesco Chili, Italy (Ducati) 32m 38.008, 190.957kmh, 2 Aaron Slight, New Zealand (Castrol Honda) 0.007s, 3 CARL FOGARTY, GB (Castrol Honda) 0.109s, 4 Troy Corser, Australia (Ducati) 0.294s, 5 Colin Edwards, USA (Yamaha) 6.500s, 6 Jamie Whitham, GB (Yamaha) 11.625s, 7 John Reynolds, GB (Suzuki) 11.667s, 8 Kirk McCarthy, Australia (Suzuki) 11.949s, 9 NEIL HODGSON, GB (Ducati) 17.780s. , 10 Anthony Gobert, Australia (Kawasaki) 17.846s.

Championship points: Slight 137, Corser 114, Fogarty 113, Kocinski 105, Chili 94, Edwards 91, Crafar 79, Gobert 59.

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