Sidecar racer Tim Reeves will return to the British Superbike paddock for the 2011 season following changes to the sport’s schedule.

The Tenterden-born three-time world champion is set to defend the British Sidecar Championship (BSC) this year, which will now become part of the support package for the British Superbike Championship (BSB).

The decision means Reeves, who now lives in Wateringbury, is due to compete for honours at four BSB meetings, which should help raise the discipline’s profile. The BSC returns to Brands Hatch on April 25, and will also have further run outs at Knockhill (June 19), Donington Park (September 11) and Silverstone (September 25).

BSB race director, Stuart Higgs, said:

"The sidecar community have done an incredible job rebuilding the profile of the unique discipline and spectacle that they are. The reinstatement of a true British Championship is well deserved and they will be a major attraction at the four BSB events where they will appear in 2011."

After yet another successful season, sidecar ace Reeves will have to wait until April to return to the track again. The 38-year-old remains in the hunt for a fourth world title after finishing runner-up in last year’s World Championship, just six points behind eventual winner Pekka Paivarinta. Two fourth place finishes in the opening round of the campaign at Le Mans ultimately cost him the world crown.

Reeves is expected to receive the 2010 BSC trophy later this month at a formal reception held at The Inn On The Lake Hotel in Gravesend on January 29.