THE RIZA Crescent Suzuki team, based in the heart of the New Forest, won't have far to come on Sunday to try to boost their lead in the Think British Superbike Championship.

Britain's top road-racing series comes to Thruxton, where Suzuki number one rider John Reynolds will be defending a 33-point championship lead over his big HM Plant Honda rival Michael Rutter.

Southampton's top racer, John Crockford, is tipping Reynolds for victory - and for Suzuki to have a big day round Thruxton's fast, sweeping curves.

He doesn't fancy his own chances too much in one of the support events, however.

Crockford has won famously at Thruxton in two of his last three outings there, but, aboard the Stamford Suzuki in the national Superstock race, the best he can hope for this weekend is a top-six place.

There are plans afoot which might see Crockford back in the superbikes next year. That's where he wants to be, and Hampshire race fans will again flock to see a British Superbike series which this year is being hailed as the best in the world.

And for good reason.

Suzuki, Honda, Kawasaki and Ducati all have bikes capable of winning races, while the Virgin Mobile-backed Yamahas are catching up fast.

Barry Sheene's nephew, Scott Smart, gave the Hawk Kawasaki team their first Superbike win at Mondello Park last time out, while Sean Emmett, on last year's title-winning Monster Mob Ducati, has won this season and has a good record round Thruxton.

But Reynolds and Rutter are the main class acts in this year's championship, along with Smart, but the other Suzuki rider, Japan's Yukio Kagayama, is slowly but surely getting over the serious injuries he sustained at Cadwell Park late last season.

He was a double winner at Oulton Park and will be formidable round Thruxton where there tends to be a freight-train of front-runners chasing the glory.

Crockford's big interest is in young Tommy Hill, the teenager he coached to success in the Yamaha R 6 Cup last year. Hill's reward was a ride in the Yamaha Superbike team and he's been improving by the week.

The main local interest will be in the support races. Crockford was hoping to get a one-off ride on the ex-Rob Frost MSS Kawasaki in the Supersport race, but the seat has gone to racing journalist Gus Scott, who is doing a special feature on the bike.

Crockford's own Stamford Suzuki team are part of a Bridgestone programme to develop a road-going tyre and, while they are still in the experimental stage, he feels Thruxton's reputation for being hard on tyres will hinder rather than help his own cause.

Look out for young Winchester flier Jamies Hillier in the Yamaha R6 Cup. He still desperately needs sponsorship, but he has been a front runner in each and every race.

The first of seven races at Thruxton gets started at 12.15.