MIRABEL, Que. (May 27) Jordan Szoke begins his quest for more Canadian Superbike glory at Circuit ICAR this weekend as the 2010 Parts Canada Superbike Championship launches into action. The 31-year-old road racer from Brantford, Ont. is trying to notch his seventh national Superbike crown and his fifth in a row. He is currently tied with Maple Ridge, B.C. legend Steve Crevier for the most Superbike titles at six. Szoke became the first racer to win four consecutive Canadian Superbike championships in 2009. But despite his run of success Szoke has had a hectic off-season. After winning his four straight titles for the Canadian Kawasaki Motors factory team, Szoke will not be back on the green bikes this summer. Instead, he has set up his own racing program using Honda motorcycles. He will be competing on board a Waznie Racing / Ciclo Werks BMC / DeWildt Honda CBR1000RR at Circuit ICAR. Szoke’s closest challenge will likely come from his old team and his former teammate, as Alex Welsh leads the Kawasaki assault for 2010. The 21-year-old Welsh joined the factory Kawasaki team as Szoke’s understudy last season and enjoyed a promising campaign, finishing seventh in the Superbike point standings. This year the Kawasaki squad has been heavily reorganized, with Competition Systems taking over the handling of the Kawasaki ZX-10Rs to be ridden by Welsh. The third of the major teams gunning for glory at Circuit ICAR will be the Rush HD / BMW Motorrad Canada factory effort, which makes its debut in the Superbike class. Two-time Canadian Superbike champion Francis Martin of Sherbrooke, Que. and Mississauga, Ont.’s Michael Ferreira will ride the new BMW S1000RRs. The 35-year-old Martin is fully recovered from a nasty accident he suffered late in the 2009 season and is anxious to re-establish himself in the feature class. The 25-year-old Ferreira, conversely, gets the chance to make his Superbike debut this summer. A third BMW pilot who could make an impression this weekend is Andrew Nelson of Kars, Ont. The 24-year-old will race a bike with backing from Orion Motorsports and BMW Motorrad Canada. Nelson finished third in the ICAR Superbike event last year, so he clearly has a soft spot for the circuit. The Honda ranks will be swelled by the ProStar Motorsports / Sturgess Cycle entries for Frank Trombino and Sebastien Tremblay. The 35-year-old Trombino, from Kleinburg, Ont., has enjoyed some of his best performances recently with ProStar. Longueuil, Que.’s Tremblay finished second in last year’s Amateur Sport Bike Championship with a win at ICAR to his credit, although he is coming back from an injury suffered at Shannonville Motorsport Park earlier this spring. Another potentially potent Honda effort will be the Jodi Christie Racing team with Jodi Christie on a Honda CBR600RR. The Keene, Ont. rider won last year’s HJC Pro Rookie of the Year Award and was the Amateur National Sport Bike champion in 2008. Perennial Superbike frontrunner Kevin Lacombe of Granby, Que. has entered a GSX-R1000 and last year’s Amateur National champion, Cody Matechuk of Cochrane, Alta., is on an Acceleration Racing GSX-R. Szoke’s 2010 campaign will also include a bid for a fifth straight title in the Pro Sport Bike category as he debuts on Honda’s CBR600RR. Should he pull off the feat, he would equal the record established by Don Munroe, who won the class five years in succession between 1994 and 1998. Szoke will face challenges from within the Honda ranks. Christie was seventh in last year’s Pro Sport Bike series as a rookie and got stronger as the season wore on. ProStar’s Tremblay should also be at home on the Honda CBR600RR after his strong Amateur campaign. Welsh will a lso be out to end Szoke’s reign on his Kawasaki ZX-6R after finishing fourth in last year’s series and challenging for victory on numerous occasions. The Ruthless Racing / Deeley Harley-Davidson Buell 1125Rs are back in the hands of North Vancouver’s Darren James and Dave Estok of New Smyrna Beach, Fla. This weekend’s action also sees the season openers for the Amateur Sport Bike, Sport Twins and Honda CBR125R Challenge classes. Raphael Archambault of St-Colomban, Que. leads the charge in the Amateur Sport Bike series on his Archambault Racing Team Honda CBR600RR after winning the Suzuki SV650 National Cup last season. The Sport Twins category makes its national debut at Circuit ICAR. Among the riders expected to contend are Brantford, Ont.’s Rob Busby and Olivier Spilborghs of White Rock, BC, both on Buells. The Honda CBR125R Challenge will enjoy a doubleheader this weekend, with feature races on Saturday and Sunday. Loic Viscasillas of nearby Laval, Que. enters the weekend as one of the home favorites. This weekend’s action will also include the second round of the Pro Honda Oils Women’s Cup Challenge. Honda CBR600RR rider Natalie Catherine Provost of Laval won at Circuit ICAR last year. Practice for this weekend’s event begins on Friday with qualifying, including the Pirelli SuperPole for the Inside Motorcycles Pole Position Award in the Parts Canada Superbike class set for Saturday. Races in all national classes will go Sunday. For ticket information call (514) 955-4227 or go to www.circuiticar.com. All Time Superbike National Wins in Quebec Jordan Szoke (Brantford, Ont.) 7; Steve Crevier (Maple Ridge, B.C.) 4; Don Munroe (Halifax, N.S.) 4; Michael Taylor (Toronto, Ont.) 4; Rueben McMurter (London, Ont.) 3; Michel Mercier (Thetford Mines, Que.) 3; Pascal Picotte (Granby, Que.) 2; Francis Martin (Sherbrooke, Que.) 2; Art Robbins (Scarborough, Ont.) 1; Miguel Duhamel (Repentigny, Que.) 1; Marco Ferland (Montreal, Que.) 1; Linnley Clarke (Barrie, Ont.) 1; Benoit Pilon (St-Jerome, Que.) 1; Jean-Francois Cyr (Ste-Adele, Que.) 1; Tom Kipp (Chardon, Ohio) 1; Brett McCormick (Saskatoon, Sask.) 1 Circuit ICAR Fast Facts “¦Jordan Szoke has another milestone on the line at Circuit ICAR May 28-30. He will be aiming to win his fifth straight season opener, maintaining a streak that dates back to 2006. Szoke also won round one of the national championship in 2000, giving him five season opener wins in his career, a Canadian record. “¦In the past 25 years of the Canadian Superbike Championship, the winner of the first round has gone on to claim the title 11 times. The last time it didn’t happen was in 2004, when Steve Crevier won the opening race but Pascal Picotte claimed the championship. “¦Last season marked the first time that Szoke won the national Superbike title yet didn’t score the most race victories. He claimed three triumphs to the four of Brett McCormick. 2009 Final Point Standings Parts Canada Superbike: 1. Jordan Szoke (Kawasaki) 341; 2. Brett McCormick (Suzuki) 336; 3. Cint McBain (Suzuki) 236; 4. Andrew Nelson (Yamaha) 200; 5. Steve Crevier (Buell) 188 Pro Sport Bike: 1. Jordan Szoke (Kawasaki) 345; 2. Brett McCormick (Suzuki) 340; 3. Kevin Lacombe (Yamaha) 238 Amateur Sport Bike: 1. Cody Matechuk (Suzuki) 311; 2. Sebastien Tremblay (Kawasaki) 270; 3. Vicki Schouten (Kawasaki) 159 Honda CBR125R Challenge: 1. Steven Nickerson 403; 2. Bodhi Edie 388; 3. Ryan Roche 268 Provisional Weekend Schedule Saturday May 29 10:45 a.m. 11:25 a.m. Parts Canada Superbike Pre-Qualifying to lock in top 10 for Pirelli SuperPole 12:25 12:45 p.m. Honda CBR125R Qualifying 1:30 p.m. 2:00 p.m. Pro Sport Bike Qualifying 2:10 p.m. Honda CBR125R Challenge Race (10 laps) 2:40 p.m. 3:20 p.m. Parts Canada Superbike Championship Pirelli SuperPole Qualifying for the Inside Motorcycles Pole Position Award 3:30 p.m. 4:20 p.m. Amateur Sport Bike Qualifying 4:30 p.m. 4:50 p.m. Sport Twins Qualifying 4:55 p.m. 5:15 p.m. Pro Honda Oils Women’s Cup Qualifying Sunday May 30 11:45 a.m. Pro Honda Oils Women’s Cup Race (12 laps) 1:00 p.m. Pro Sport Bike Race (14 laps) Honda CBR125R Challenge Race (10 laps) Amateur Sport Bike Race (14 laps) 2:50 p.m. Parts Canada Superbike Championship Race (18 laps) Sport Twins Race (12 laps)