Sittingbourne rider Shane Byrne has targeted another two British Superbike titles after joining reigning champions HM Plant Honda ahead of the new season.

The double BSB champion has signed for the three-time championship winning team and will ride alongside defending champion Ryuichi Kiyonari in the 2011 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship.

Byrne (pictured) returns to BSB for the first time since lifting his second title in 2008 having spend the past two seasons in the World Superbike Championship.

He will seek to equal his new team-mate's record of three BSB titles before aiming to secure a record-setting fourth.

Byrne said: “It is great to be coming back to BSB - I saw Kiyo win the title this season and until then Niall Mackenzie had always been the leading rider in terms of championship wins - he had three to mine and Kiyo's two. Now Kiyo has three too, one more than me and I definitely want to equal the score.

"Every rider will tell you there is a rule in racing and that it to beat your team-mate and mine is the reigning champion so that's giving me real motivation. I am coming back to BSB to win races, score podiums and fight for the championship."

He added: "It's all very exciting and I am not coming back thinking it's going to be a walk in the park. The competition in BSB is always high and you can see that from this season and how close it was right until the end.

"I am thinking of the long game; I don't want to win just one title, I want two as there is nothing more I want than to become the most successful rider in BSB history in terms of championship wins. I want to win the title again and then come back with a number one plate to defend."