MCE British Superbike stalwart Richard Cooper will make his return to the championship onboard the Buildbase BMW S1000RR, after parting ways with the Anvil Hire TAG Racing team a few weeks ago.

The diminutive racer will line up on the starting grid at Cadwell, after a successful test at Mallory Park today. He is no stranger to the team as he won the Pirelli National Superstock 1000 title with the outfit back in 2011.

Cooper is currently ninth in the overall standings, and will be aiming to build on his double podium win at Brands Hatch two months ago. Now he is looking forward to battling for podiums alongside fellow Buildbase riders, Ryuichi Kiyonari and Lee Jackson.

“I’m delighted to be returning to the Buildbase BMW team. Coming back here is something I’ve wanted to do since I left them as National Superstock champion in 2011,” said Cooper.

“It’s a bit unexpected to make the move mid-season but that’s the way it is. We’ve had a great day testing at Mallory today, we must have done 100 laps and the bike is brilliant, I can’t wait to ride it at the weekend.

“With five races to go until the Showdown, we are 36 points off the top six so it is within our grasp but the team have said there is no pressure so we will take it as it comes. We’ve got a package capable of running at the front.”

Team Owner Steve Hicken said: “It’s great to have Richard back with the team. We’ve always had a great relationship since he rode for us back in 2011. He’s shown a lot of potential so far this year and we are confident of continuing that.

“We’ve had a really productive day at Mallory today, his lap times were really impressive and so were Lee and Kiyo’s. It’s been a bit of a bumpy start to 2015 for us but we’re feeling really positive ahead of Cadwell Park.”