Kawasaki’s Tom Sykes is hoping to have a repeat of last year’s World Superbike round at Donington Park, where the reigning champ took the Superpole win at record pace, set a new lap record and won both races for his first ever double in the series.

The Yorkshireman slipped down in the World Superbike standings after fellow compatriot Pata Honda’s Jonathan Rea won three races on the bounce, and now leads the championship, with Sykes trailing in second by four points. Sykes is eager to regain his lead at the top and is pushing for another double victory this weekend.

“Donington is a fantastic circuit and doing the double there last year made it very special because it was my first ever double in World Superbike. You cannot beat Donington for scenery as well. When the sun is shining there is almost no better place to be,” said Sykes.

“Donington is a great circuit and hopefully we should be able to make the most of it, like we did last year. We should be on a very good level there. There will be more of my family, friends and personal sponsors at this one than any other race of the year so I will use up my allocation of passes for sure.

“There may be only one British round this year but Donington is a very good motorcycle circuit, also a good one for the spectators. We have to make my home round count.”