Anvil TAG Kawasaki have today confirmed that Richard Cooper will remain with the team for a fourth season and he will be joined in the MCE British Superbike squad by Swedish rider Filip Backlund for 2015.
Cooper’s debut BSB season was cut short by a badly-broken arm at Thruxton but he bounced back at the Brands Hatch finale to score a wet-weather podium.
“I am really excited about getting back on the Anvil Hire TAG Kawasaki again after missing out last year with the injury. I felt that when the crash happened my season was just getting going and I was starting to make an impression. I had been building up on the Superbike and had made the jump into scoring consistent top ten finishes and then the podium at Brands Hatch just topped that really,” he said.
“Seeing the developments they have made with the bike since I last rode it makes it a really exciting prospect for me. I think if we can pick up where we left off then we should be in a good position. Every rider wants to be in the Showdown, but the past seasons have shown if you can be consistently finishing in the top six then there is no reason why we can’t be there. I am looking forward to getting back out and we have a good test schedule in place to hit the ground running.”
Backlund jumped into the big class at Donington when he replaced ian Hutchinson in the FFX Yamaha team. He makes the move to Kawasaki this year after previously racing a Superstock-spec version.
“I am very happy to be joining Anvil Hire TAG Racing. They had a very impressive debut season and I am sure that they will be even stronger with that experience behind them. It feels great to be back on a Kawasaki as it’s a bike I have ridden for some years now and I know its general feeling and how to ride it,” he said.
“I’m just now waiting to get testing started and to be on a race bike again. We will be aiming to make the Showdown, but ultimately I go racing to win and to be on the podium - that is always my goal.”
Shaun Winfield makes up a three-rider assault on the championship as the youngster will start his first full season in the class.
