Round 1 - Eastern Creek: February 16-18

Troy Bayliss, Troy Corser and Andrew Pitt have a fair bit in common.

They all finished in the top 5 in last year's World Superbike Series. They are all Australian. And they each came to wider attention with top-2 finishes in the Australian Superbike Championship.

In a country that prides itself on sporting achievement and the production of champions and world-beaters, there is perhaps no more fertile breeding ground than the YMF Loan Australian Superbike Championship.

And the continued commitment of the 8 round event to the cultivation of young Australian motorcycle talent will ensure that this remains the case.

MotoGP ace Chris Vermeulen made his road-race debut as a raw youngster on a Yamaha in 1999 and there is a chap by the name of Doohan who raced in the Australian series before racing into motorcycle immortality.

So what will the 2007 series bring? Which current champion will be crowned and which future champion will be born?

Yamaha has attempted to build on the success of 2006 Champion Jamie Stauffer by adding his brother Dan to their team while Kawasaki pulled off a major coup with the signing of former World Superbike competitor Anthony Gobert.

After a disappointing 2006, Suzuki has assembled a formidable 2007 line-up. With 4 Australian Superbike titles between them, Shawn Giles and Craig Coxhell will contend not only with opposition teams but each other in their fight for race victories.

Honda's recent testing at Winton meanwhile has suggested a return to the success of their 2005 and 2006 series' may be imminent.

It is the depth of the 2007 series which is the cause of greatest anticipation, claims series promoter Terry O'Neill. "I can't remember a time when we've had so many top riders and top factory and privateer teams all at the peak of their fitness".

And atop 1000cc machines capable of generating 200 horsepower, you sure would want to ensure both rider and team are at their optimum.

In recognition of the growing popularity of Superbikes, the stars of the Australian Superbike Series will get the chance to prove their wares to national television audiences as well as to residents of 55 countries and regions via satellite.

The acknowledgment of the Australian championship as one of the world's pre-eminent competitions follows the dramatic rise in the global profile of Superbike racing as the most accessible form of high-octane racing on two wheels.

The opening round of the 2007 YMF Loan Australian Superbike Championship is at Sydney's Eastern Creek between February 16-18.

Mick Doohan won't be there. But the next Mick Doohan may.

Full details can be found at the 2007 YMF Loan Australian Superbike Championship Series website: www.australiansuperbikechampionship.com