As the Showdown begins this weekend at Donington Park for the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship title, the MSS Colchester Kawasaki team are already preparing to be in a position to challenge for next year's crown with the team becoming the first to lead the way and run a bike that conforms to the 2012 regulations.

Gary Mason will ride a Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R specially developed under the newly announced 2012 race regulations for the final three rounds of this year's championship as the team bid to get a head start on their rivals.

Mason said:

"This season is already over in terms of the Championship title so it's exciting to be looking at 2012 already. Testing is fine but you can't beat race data. There's a bit of an unknown feeling, for example I'll be looking at a new dash and it's going to be a bit weird using a clutch again! I really believe I can get in amongst them though and show people what I can do on a bike that needs more throttle control."

Team boss Nick Morgan explained:

"These new rules have been brought in for 2012-2015 and are a major change to the spec of the bikes, so we're looking to hit the ground running next year and where better to test and develop than at the races. Winter testing is always hit and miss plus you never get to use the right tracks, so this is ideal. We've chosen Gary to spearhead this development because he's proved in both the wet and dry he has great throttle control, has had two years with the team and obviously knows the new ZX-10R inside-out, all of which will help with the new ECU. It's obviously very early days but we know the chassis is great, the rider is focused and we have some top technicians, so I don't see why we can't have a proper go at this!"

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