Motopower, the recently formed racing partnership between RS Performance and Harris Performance, has announced its rider line-up for the 2001 British championship season.

The team will compete in the British Supersport and Superstock championships with Glen Richards (AUS) and Gary Mason and it has also entered the inaugural Junior British Superstock championship with 16-year-old Craig Jones.

Richards was runner-up in last year’s British Superstock series on RS Performance’s Sanyo First National Honda FireBlade and finished fifth in the Supersport championship riding a Honda CBR600. The 27-year-old former Australian 125cc champion from Adelaide has been racing in the UK since 1998.

Gary Mason, 21, from Lichfield in Staffordshire, burst on to the British championship scene last season with a string of impressive rides. He finished eight in the British Supersport championship with a best result of second at Brands Hatch and competed in seven rounds of the British Superstock series, finishing in fourth place at Donington Park and 12th overall.

Craig Jones will ride a new Honda CBR600 in the Junior British Superstock championship having competed in five rounds of last year’s British 125 championship as one of its youngest ever riders. The Northwich-based teenager took a tenth at Cadwell Park after graduating from the Aprilia 125 class in 1999.

Motopower team principal, Russell Savory, is confident that his 2001 rider line-up will deliver results, saying: "Glen is a proven race winner and, with a little more luck, could easily have won last year’s British Superstock series. Gary put in some very strong performances during the 2000 season and his first British championship win can’t be far away."

He continued: "Craig is a very exciting prospect in a new series designed to bring on young talent such as his. With three riders competing in three classes in five different races over the weekend we’re certainly going to have our work cut out but we can’t wait for it all to start."