Fans' favourite Chris Walker will be on the 2011 British Superbike Championship (BSB) grid after agreeing a deal with Pr1mo Racing Kawasaki.
Time seemed to be running out for the 38-year-old from Nottingham, but one of the series' most experienced riders has managed to secure a deal with BSB newcomers Pr1mo Kawasaki.
Walker, a three-time runner up in BSB, is delighted to be back on the grid and admitted it would have hurt to sit out, what he believes will be an exciting season. “The Stalker”, a race winner in World Superbikes, finished 10th in the final championship standings last season.
He said: “I am ready for the season now and can’t wait to get cracking. I am working with a brand new team, new sponsors and a new bike as we have the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R so it is an exciting time for me. It is a new team coming into the championship and my best times, even since starting out in schoolboy motocross have been with Kawasaki so to say I am chuffed to bits is an understatement. The team are making some final preparations and assembling all the goodies to the bike before we can get out on track for a shakedown test soon.”
Despite joining a new team in the paddock, he is confident the bike is more than capable of delivering results this season. “We are only a small team but we have a strong group of guys behind us and we will have some technical support from Kawasaki so I feel ready for Brands Hatch,” he said. “I was desperate to be part of this season, it is going to be a big year for the championship and there is a real buzz about it already. I wanted to be back in the hunt and back on the grid. I certainly didn’t want to miss out and have to watch from the sidelines and I think we can get some results this year.”
The 2011 British Superbike Championship begins at Brands Hatch on April 22-25.
