Paul Bird Kawasaki's Broc Parkes reckons he will be sad to leave the squad after this weekend's Portimao World Superbike round but aims to exit Portugal on a high.

Both Parkes and team-mate Makoto Tamada have been replaced by MotoGP ejectee Chris Vermeulen and a young British rider who is expected to be announced tomorrow.

"I'm going into this weekend under mixed emotions as it's been a tough year filled with many ups and downs. I can honestly say looking back that I've enjoyed the challenge of the ZX-10R and really appreciated working with the Paul Bird Motorsport and Kawasaki Racing teams," said Parkes.

"The team and I have worked really hard so it would be nice to do well this weekend and end the season on a high. I'm obviously very disappointed that I will not be continuing into 2010 with Kawasaki but that is the way racing goes.

"I wish the team all the best for the future and want to thank them for the opportunity in 2009. Portimao should provide a good race for all and I enjoyed racing there last year so I've got nothing to lose but to do well."