The HM Plant Honda team will begin their title assault this Easter weekend when the British Superbike Championship gets underway at Brands Hatch on the Indy circuit, with Australian Josh Brookes entering the series as a title favourite from the outset after finishing fourth as a rookie last season.

Brookes has been one of the pace-setters in testing, enjoying his best shot yet at winning a championship overseas since moving to Europe in 2006.

“I haven’t actually had a BSB race on the Indy circuit yet, but I am familiar with the track from when I raced in the World Superbike and Supersport Championships as it forms the majority of the full Grand Prix layout,” Brookes said. “We have been strong in testing and the HM Plant Honda is already an improvement on what we raced last season as there have been changes to the engine characteristics and suspension for 2010.

“We can see from testing that we have the potential. The times we have been running have been up the sharp end but I know we still have more to come.”

Despite his clear speed in the pre-season tests, Brookes still awaits the season opener this weekend to see where he stacks up against the best in BSB.

“There is always a lot of emphasis on the opening round of the championship as you always have lots of speculation on how everyone is going to perform after pre-season testing,” he continued. “What you have to remember is that testing is one thing and those performances don’t always translate to the race.

“At the first round you do get slightly nervous beforehand as it proves once and for all where everybody is at on track. The talking stops, and how you perform on track speaks for itself. It is the time to bring out the big guns and make the most of the opportunities. I certainly won’t be happy unless I’m at the front.”