The World Superbike circus will gather at windswept Phillip Island for testing this weekend, dusting off leather suits and warming up bikes in preparation for the season opener at the same venue on February 28.

The British riders will be especially looking forward to the Phillip Island round – not due to the inclement weather making them feel at home – but because 2010 is shaping up to be the most successful year ever in WSBK for Ol’ Blighty.

Between them; Shane Byrne, Leon Camier, Cal Crutchlow, Leon Haslam, Jonathon Rea, Tom Sykes and James Toseland represent all participating manufacturers with the exception of BMW and the smart money is on one of them being crowned world champion once the season wraps up at Magny Cours in October.

One rider who is at short odds for the title is Ten Kate Honda pilot Johnny Rea. Outscoring his illustrious team mate Carlos Checa last year, Rea scored two hard fought victories at Misano and the Nurburgring on his way to fifth place in the championship. After finishing fastest at the Portimao test in January, many pundits are expecting Rea to step up and be the first Briton to take the WSBK crown since 2007 champ James Toseland.

JT’s return to the WSBK camp is well documented, as last year at Tech 3 Yamaha he struggled to match his first year results in MotoGP, resulting in a seat swap with American prodigy Ben Spies. Toseland’s track record in Superbikes is exemplary, taking the title twice with Honda and Ducati and now he is spurred on to win the title with a third manufacturer and to beat compatriot Carl Fogarty’s record of four WSBK titles. This will be much easier said than done as his teammate and current WSS champ Cal Crutchlow is in ominous form.

Crutchlow has made the most of testing thus far, adapting well to the larger YZF-R1 and his dice with JT will perhaps be the most intriguing inter-team battle in the paddock this year. Wanting to repay the faith Yamaha showed him in offering a WSBK ride, Cal will be riding in his usual all-out style in the quest for race wins and successive world titles.

Signing with Althea Ducati for the upcoming season, Shane Byrne, despite his blistering pace at times last year was only able to make the podium once in Misano. Though proud of a career in which he has won two BSB titles and enjoyed stints in MotoGP, should ‘Shakey’ match his undoubted pace with more consistency, his love affair with Ducati may net him his biggest prize yet.

Reigning BSB champion Leon Camier has signed with an Aprilia team who shocked everyone last season with their brutal pace from the outset. With two top ten finishes for Aprilia at the last round in 2009 and showing good form in the Portimao test, Max Biaggi will have his work cut out for him trying to keep his young teammate nipping at his heels.

Like his namesake, Leon Haslam has joined a new team in Suzuki this year in the pursuit of a first WSBK title. Haslam rode the wheels off his Stiggy Honda CBR1000RR last year on his way to four podiums, with an impressed Suzuki moving quickly to secure his services for 2010. Along with former MotoGP pilot Sylvain Guintoli, the Suzuki Alstare team has one of the strongest rider line-ups and will no doubt want to improve on their disappointing fifth place finish last year.

Former BSB star Tom Sykes moves to a Kawasaki team that seeks to consolidate this year with the aim of challenging for the title in 2011 when the much anticipated, next generation ZX-10R lands. Free from the financial burden of their MotoGP program and focusing all their efforts on WSBK, Kawasaki have signaled their intent by signing Sykes and MotoGP winner Chris Vermeulen in a bid to achieve the kind of results that have eluded the marque since its glory days in the early 1990’s.

With seven manufacturers and a record number of champion riders fighting it out this year, 2010 promises to be the most exciting WSBK season yet – expect ‘God Save the Queen’ to feature heavily on this seasons soundtrack.