Coates' flying form brought to early end.

Adrian Coates' good qualifying form was brought to an unfortunate end in the final race of the year in Australia, when he was thrown from his bike early in the race.

The Irishman suffered a mechanical problem on his Team Optimum QUB Aprilia, which locked the rear wheel and flicked the rider to the floor. It is not yet known whether the engine or the gearbox which was at fault, although an earlier gearbox problem had prevented Coates from getting the best set-up out of his machine.

"There was trouble during the warm-up, when I couldn't back shift," Coates revealed later, "This was later traced to a major gearbox problem so, essentially, the first time I went out there flat-out was on the out-lap from the pits to the grid.

"The boys had stripped the 'box down in no time at all before the race but, early in the race, it locked up going through turn two, and I went right over the bars and hard onto my back. I'll be a little sore in the morning.

"I have to thank [team boss] Robert [Fleck] for committing to me in my first year in the series, whilst the mechanics have never given anything less than their level best over all of the 16 races. I [know I] can run up there with the top privateers, and look forward to my next opportunity."

Team-mate Jamie Robinson did not race at all, after a massive crash on Saturday left him with a broken finger and heavy bruising.

"I've felt better - but I've certainly felt worse!" the English rider said, "When I get back to the UK, I'll get my finger X-rayed to see if there is any surgery needed on it, whilst I also need to go to the dentist to get my wisdom tooth fixed as it is pretty painful due to it being split in the crash. I can only hope to get fit and back on a motorcycle very soon."

"It was a bit of a sad end to the season, particularly after Adrian qualified so well after some bad luck," commented acting team manager Ken Beckett, "The same goes for Jamie, too. The pair of them deserved much better than what the season has delivered to them over the 16 meetings. They have the potential to be very good in the future."