YOUNG Swindon racer Max Cook will kickstart his new season this weekend in the first round of the HEL Motostar Championship at Silverstone.

The competition is one of several classes that will act as support races when the new British Superbike Championship campaign gets under way at the home of British motor racing.

After a couple of successful tests in Spain and the UK during the winter, 13-year-old Cook and the rest of his ReplicastUK Racing Moto3 team are hoping to get off to a flying start at the Northamptonshire track.

Replicast team manager Gary Dawson said: “The whole team have worked so hard throughout the winter to considerably improve the Honda Moto3 for the start of the season.

“We have made a lot of changes and no doubt that will be reflected in our results.

“It’s been a lot of hard work pulling everything together and to be back working at the sharp end with such a professional group of people is very gratifying.

“We are all looking forward to the first race and we will see what we can achieve.

“The performance of the Open Class Honda Moto3 is where we planned it to be and we are really looking forward to what Max can do once he’s had more track time on it.”

The season will be Cook’s first with the Scott Redding-backed Replicast team and his performances over the winter have impressed Dawson so much that he has decided to use the majority of the bike upgrades now.

Normally, Cook would have earned these over the course of the season.