British Superbike Champion Tarran Mackenzie is up for the WorldSBK challenge this weekend as he prepares for his Donington wildcard.
The McAMS Yamaha squad will make their debut on the world stage at the Leicestershire circuit they know well but despite Mackenzie having prior top-step pedigree, the weekend will be a learning curve for all involved.
Superbike World Championship-spec engine and Magneti Marelli electronics will be added to the McAMS R1 bringing it in line with reigning title-holders Pata Yamaha. Additional support is on offer from YME’s racing department, and the British team already houses two experienced pairs of hands in the form of Tim Seed and Les Pearson - both having previously worked in the World Championship with Yamaha - but with no prior testing, Friday’s free practice will be Mackenzie’s first taste of the WorldSBK machine ahead of the weekend’s three races.
”I'm looking forward to this weekend a lot!” Mackenzie said as his much-anticipated wildcard finally approached. “The weather forecast is looking great so we should get a lot of decent track time so I can't wait to get stuck in.
"It's going to be a lot to take in, as our engine and electronics will be WorldSBK specification so we'll have some work on to get used to that. We just need to take it session by session and see what comes as the weekend goes on."
