CONFIDENT Tom Sykes will come out all guns blazing as he bids to claim his maiden victory when the British Superbike roadshow roars into Oulton Park this weekend.

The Fenay Bridge-based race ace is currently sixth in the Championship as the season reaches the halfway stage and is celebrating after receiving a wild card entry rider for the 10th round of the Hannspree World Superbike Championship at Brands Hatch next month.

Sykes, 22, (pictured right with Rizla Suzuki team manager Jack Valentine) said: “This season has gone nowhere near to plan because I failed to score in two races which put me on the back foot as far as the race for the championship has gone.

“I had the fastest bike at Mallory Park but problems with the clutch, when we had to change the whole assembly, made it a struggle,because one of my strengths is late braking, but then I was fighting to outbreak the Hondas and points were lost.”

He added: “But I’m really excited about World Superbikes at Brands Hatch (August 1-3) and I’m really looking forward to racing there.

“It’s going to be a learning curve as I need to get my head round Superpole and everything but it will be good. I’m looking forward to brushing elbows with Troy Bayliss, Noriyuki Haga and Troy Corser but I won’t be overawed.

“We’ll be using the same bike as I ride in BSB (the GSX-R1000), which means it will be slightly lesser tuned than the world superbikes, so I’ll just have to give it more throttle and show what we can can do.

“To be honest I’d like to be in the top three, I’m definitely going there for a podium and I can’t see why we wouldn’t achieve it. I want to run at the sharp end, obviously a win would be better and if there is a chance of that I’ll take it. I want to cause a few upsets and put on a strong show for everyone.”

First up, Sykes will be tackling the demanding 2.692-mile Oulton Park circuit head on to try and secure his maiden BSB win and reward Rizla Suzuki, who he teamed up with from Stobart Honda, for their hard work.

“I seem to be flying the flag for Suzuki in this championship which is fantastic. The team are absolutely brilliant and are hanging their hopes on me, so I desperately want to do the business for them.”

And Sykes has also gained the plaudits from Rizla Suzuki team boss Jack Valentine.

“Everyone has had a chance to recharge and Rizla Suzuki is more than ready for Oulton Park. Tom loves racing at Oulton and last time we were there in May he showed what he is capable of. There is no reason why he can’t be on the front row and on top of the podium.

“The bike is working really well and the nimble chassis paired with the strong engine is just what is required at Oulton.”

And, on Sykes’s World Superbike wild card, he added: “Tom has been riding well and we had a good set-up when we were at Brands Hatch earlier in the year, plus our Rizla Suzuki has come on since then so I think we are on for a strong showing. There will be a certain amount of pressure being on the World stage but we will just be going about our business as usual.

“World Superbike riders take no prisoners and the depth of field is immense, so our first objective is to get into Superpole.

“Tom hasn’t had to use a qualifying tyre all year and he has never done Superpole so that will add to the pressure, but I’m confident he can bang in a fast lap and put us on the front two rows. He is up for it and I’m sure he will do us proud.”