Josh Elliott will defend his British Superstock 1000cc title next year after he signed a deal to ride in the series with Tyco BMW.

Josh dominated the series this year on his Morello Kawasaki and was hoping to make the step up to a competitive Superbike ride in 2016, but that move failed to materialise so he has opted to tackle the Superstock series once again.

“We were on the lookout for a Superbike ride but plans fell through on that,” said Josh. “It is a bit disappointing. Naturally after the effort we put in this year we wanted to take that step up but I wasn’t going to settle for an average Superbike ride. I wanted something that would be very competitive. I wasn’t going to take any deal just so I could say ‘I’m a Superbike rider now’. I wanted a good bike but unfortunately things didn’t work out and I had to make the best decision possible, and that was to go back to Superstock and try to retain my title. Tyco BMW are the best team to be able to do that with.”

Josh spent all last year battling against the BMW of Alastair Seeley and that experience helped him make the decision after he was approached by Philip Neill of TAS Racing. “He was asking why I don’t have a superbike ride and said he would do something for me,” he revealed. “A few days later he came back with an offer for a Superstock ride and potentially a move into a Superbike ride for 2017. We had a think about it. Tyco BMW are a really good team and I had raced against Alastair Seeley all last year so I know how good the bike is and I think I can get a bit extra out of it. I think it was the best option for me and I decided to take it.”

It will not be Josh first experience on a BMW. His introduction to the British Superstock series was on a similar bike, but the Ballinamallard rider is confident that he will be on a much more competitive machine this time around. “The first time I moved into that class it was on a BMW,” he said. “That was three years ago and it was a very fast bike but back then it wasn’t as strong as it is now. It is a much stronger and more competitive package now and I am looking forward to getting back on and seeing what improvements have been made.”

Josh is hoping that another strong season will see his ambitions fulfilled and earn him a Superbike ride in 2017. “In racing there is nothing guaranteed unfortunately but I will be getting Superbike rides throughout the year and possibly doing the sunflower race on it at the end of the year so will get a taste of what it is like,” he said. “If everything goes well in the Superstock championship then I should be in a good position to take the Superbike ride next year.”

Josh is hoping to get his first taste of the new bike in January, with official testing starting in March. The first Superstock race of the season takes place at the start of April.