Missing out on the title last season has made Shane 'Shakey' Byrne even more determined to come out fighting at his home round of Brands Hatch this weekend (18-21 April) as the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship kicks off in Kent this Easter.

Byrne has his sights firmly set on an unprecedented fourth title and after setting a blistering pace at the official pre-season tests at both Donington Park and Snetterton, under the existing lap records, nothing short of a double win will satisfy the triple champion.

Byrne said:

"I can't wait to get started. It feels like it has been a long winter but the Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki team haven't stood still and testing went really well for us. We have moved onto the 17" wheels and they really suit my riding style and it all works; I have a lot more confidence in the front end and some of the issues I had last year had been highlighted at Snetterton so to have the good test there was great. Overall I am really happy; I have given the team feedback on where we needed to go after the tests and we are ready for Brands Hatch.

"Brands Hatch is my home round and I want to get the season off to the best possible start. I don't think you can count on what happened in testing as it is never a true reflection of what will happen at Clearways on the final lap of the race, but I know we have done everything possible to be in the best position for this weekend. It will be interesting to see how some of the other riders fair when it is a race situation rather than testing. You can read what you want into pre-season testing, but if you haven't been smashing out the laps then it can all mean nothing when it comes to the 30th lap of a race.

"I really want to go racing now. It's not far from home so that's good for me and the gaps will be closer at Brands Hatch because of the Indy circuit and ultimately I am focused on what I need to do to be fast. If you thought I was determined to win that fourth title last year, all I can say is you haven't seen nothing yet!"


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