A MOTORCYCLING season that looked over before it began has been rescued by a sponsor.

Luke Lambert, from Basingstoke, has just signed a sponsorship deal which will enable him to complete his racing season in the competitive Virgin Mobile Yamaha R6 Cup.

The 20-year-old, who looked set to hang up his racing leathers through lack of funds, can now look forward to the rest of the season, thanks to Southampton-based haulage company KG Thomas International.

The Virgin Mobile Yamaha R6 Cup is a one-make series designed to seek out champions of the future. The winner of the series has his £20,000 entry fee refunded and will also be a member of the 2005 Virgin Mobile Samsung British Superbike team.

Lambert, who before this year had only competed in a handful of club meetings, had to pass a test to prove his ability to race in the closely-fought series.

Despite never having competed on any of the tracks, he is already featuring on the points scoreboard and has set himself an achievable goal of finishing in the top 15, with a view to returning next season.

Lambert, a bricklayer who lives in Brighton Hill, said: "I am absolutely delighted that KG Thomas have come to the rescue and I'm looking forward to repaying them with some strong results as the season progresses.

"The R6 Cup is a very tough class, as everyone has identical machinery, so it really does come down to rider skill. It's a good series to learn in, as you see guys trying something that you wouldn't necessarily do but you know you have exactly the same bike, so you give it a go.

"Most of the time it works, which is great for your confidence, and I am really looking forward to the remainder of the calendar."

The R6 Cup enjoys live Sky Sports coverage and the racers are also the subject of a fly-on-the-wall documentary, which is due to be shown later in the year.

All competitors are aged between 16 and 22 and their worst two scores in the season are discounted.

The second and third-placed finishers are refunded 50 and 30 per cent of their entry fees respectively but the top five finishers are not permitted to enter the series next year.

The £20,000 championship fee covers the use of an additional 2003 Yamaha R6 bike for testing, which riders will own at the end of the year.

The series competes at 12 of the 13 British Superbike meetings as one of the main support races to the UK's headline bike racing championship.