Brookes to add some Aussie WSBK flair

Round 10 of the Superbike World Championship will be held at the latest version of the classic Silverstone circuit this weekend, with British-based Aussie hotshot Josh Brookes set to join compatriots Troy Corser and Broc Parkes on the startline.

Brookes, from Bringelly on the outskirts of Sydney, is currently running a close second in this year's British Superbike Championship on a factory Honda, and will compete at Silverstone as a wildcard alongside team-mate Ryuichi Kiyonari.

Just last month, Brookes completed the ideal warm-up for the world superbike cameo when he clean swept the British superstock title round at Silverstone.

The inclusion of Brookes will provide a short-term boost in quality Aussie stocks, especially now that Queenslander Chris Vermeulen (Kawasaki) will be sitting out the rest of the year with injury. Vermeulen recently underwent surgery on his damaged right knee in Barcelona.

As for Corser (BMW), he slipped back to seventh in the championship in the last round at Brno after a big qualifying crash saw him sit out the rest of the meeting with heavy bruising.

Since then, he's been working hard on his fitness, and a test at Mugello yesterday confirmed he'll be ready for action at Silverstone.

"I'm looking forward to Silverstone. I spend a fair amount of the year in Great Britain and expect to see a lot of family friends at the track, so it will be something of a second home race for me," said Corser.

"I've already had a chance to take a look around the new track. The new layout looks very good and surface grip seems pretty consistent. There are a few bumps, especially where the new asphalt has been laid.

"I'm expecting us to do a good job here with our bike; we've done a lot of work on chassis set-up and the bumps shouldn't be a particularly big problem. Engine power is a major factor at Silverstone, as the circuit has several long straights.

"There are also a handful of long, sweeping corners, which load up the tyres on one side, so it's important to have a good throttle connection."

The WSBK title has been to Silverstone on six previous occasions, the most recent in 2007 when only one race took place (won by Australia's Troy Bayliss) due to relentless rain that flooded the track before race two could get underway.

This year's Silverstone is a very different venue from previous versions, with massive investment in both a heavily modified circuit layout and infrastructure improvements resulting in a 5.902km circuit where speed is a key element.

The revised circuit has an average speed just a fraction slower than Phillip Island, something that championship leader Max Biaggi will relish on his ultra fast Aprilia.

Biaggi has a massive 68pt lead with four rounds remaining, and Briton Leon Haslam (Suzuki) also holds a huge cushion over third-placed Jonathan Rea (Honda).

If Biaggi maintains his searing form, he may wrap up the championship in round 11 at Nurburgring on September 5.

Haslam and Rea are but two of the seven British riders in this year's championship, and they'll be pushing hard to win in front of a partisan home crowd alongside the likes of Yamaha pair Cal Crutchlow and James Toseland and Leon Camier (Aprilia).

Other potential race winners include Ducati duo Noriyuki Haga and Michel Fabrizio and Spain's Carlos Checa (Ducati).

The world supersport event will continue the absorbing battle between Kenan Sofuoglu, (Honda), Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki) and Eugene Laverty (Honda), with a batch of wildcards also keen to put their names up in lights.

There will be live coverage on Fox Sports 2 at 8.30pm Sunday, and a 30-minute highlights package on SBS at 1.30pm on August 8.

WORLD SUPERBIKE STANDINGS (AFTER ROUND 9 OF 13):

1 Max Biaggi, Italy, Aprilia 352
2 Leon Haslam, Great Britain, Suzuki 284
3 Jonathan Rea, Great Britain, Honda 203
4 Carlos Checa, Spain, Ducati 189
5 Noriyuki Haga, Japan, Ducati 172
6 James Toseland, Great Britain, Yamaha 169
7 Troy Corser, Australia, BMW 149
8 Michel Fabrizio, Italy, Ducati 147
9= Leon Camier, Great Britain, Aprilia 138
9= Cal Crutchlow, Great Britain, Yamaha 138
19 Chris Vermeulen, Australia, Kawasaki 10
20 Broc Parkes, Australia, Honda 9