by Martin Jefferies

Ireland's Adam Carroll celebrates at Brands Hatch (photo courtesy A1GP.com)

Irish A1GP fans raised a glass of Guinness to the genius of Adam Carroll on Sunday afternoon, as they celebrated their country's World Cup triumph at Brands Hatch.

Carroll completed a memorable double on race day, winning from pole position in both the sprint and feature races at the Kent circuit.

The 26-year-old surrendered the lead to Mexico's Salvador Duran at the start of race one but the pair swapped positions during the mandatory pitstop, thanks to incredibly slick work by the Irish crew.

Mexico momentarily dropped to fourth but battled back to take the final step of the podium, just over five seconds behind second-placed Narain Karthikeyan for India.

With Portugal fifth and Switzerland down in eighth, Carroll took an eight point lead into the feature race and could not be outdone in the championship decider.

The Irishman crossed the line 10 seconds clear of the Netherlands' Jeroen Bleekemolen, with last year's World Champion Neel Jani taking the chequered flag in third place to secure the runner-up spot in 2009.

"It was probably easier to watch than it was to drive," Carroll told KentOnline. "You're so aware of all the things that can possibly go wrong and Brands Hatch is an easy track to make a mistake at because so many of the corners are blind. You have to stay absolutely focussed, 100 per cent of the time.

"But I knew I could do it this weekend and I knew the team would give me everything they had. It was always going to be hard to beat us."

Carroll said "a few beers" were being readied ahead of Team Ireland's post-race celebrations and said he was looking forward to relaxing with his friends and family after a gruelling 14-race season.

"This is a hard game; there are loads of opportunities out there but you need a lot of money to secure them," he said, when asked about his plans for next season.

"I've always believed I'd have to prove myself the hard way but hopefully I'll sneak in the back door somewhere along the line and an opportunity will come my way."

Results: Feature race

1. Ireland (Adam Carroll), 49 laps

2. Netherlands (Jeroen Bleekemolen), +10.156s

3. Switzerland (Neel Jani), +13.564s

4. Monaco (Clivio Piccione), +14.293s

5. Portugal (Filipe Albuquerque), +16.484s

6. Mexico (Salvador Duran), +21.810s

Results: Sprint race

1. Ireland (Adam Carroll), 16 laps

2. India (Narain Karthikeyan), +7.230s

3. Mexico (Salvador Duran), +12.340s

4. USA (JR Hildebrand), +12.689s

5. Portugal (Filipe Albuquerque), +13.018s

6. Netherlands (Jeroen Bleekemolen), +13.783s

Final championship standings

1. Ireland, 112 points

2. Switzerland, 95 points

3. Portugal, 92 points

4. Netherlands, 75 points

5. France, 47 points

6. Malaysia, 43 points

10. Great Britain, 28 points