Shane Byrne heads into this weekend’s British Superbike Championship decider at Brands Hatch with his title hopes hanging by a thread.

He sits 44 points off leader John Hopkins who is hoping to become the first US rider to clinch the title.

The Sittingborne racer, a long time leader in the championship, has struggled in recent weeks and failed to make the podium in either of the last two rounds.

During the last meeting, at Silverstone, he picked up two fifth-place finishes on his Honda.

The final round of the season at Brands Hatch sees five riders all in contention for the title.

Byrne is targeting nothing less than wins.

He said: "Brands Hatch is like my back garden, so performing strongly there is always important to me as I get so much support.

"We go into the final three races on the back foot and nothing short of three race wins will be enough. Myself and the HM Plant Honda team will be doing everything we can to achieve that."