THE 2010 British Superbike Championship will feature three new manufacturers when the season gets underway on Easter weekend at Brands Hatch.

Entries from Aprilia, BMW and KTM now mean a staggering eight manufacturers will be represented.

There will also be a two-pronged Aprilia assault in the inaugural BSB Evolution (Evo) class, with Splitlath Motorsport confirming brothers Chris and Joe Burns will line-up on the Superbike grid on a pair of Aprilia RSV4s.

Splitlath Aprilia team owner John Dimbylow said: “We have entered BSB Evo as we really believe that it is the future.

“The beauty of the Aprilia is it is a race bike with lights and we can make various changes at each round to help with the development.

“We are very excited that we have also been able to run a two-man team, especially to have Chris and Joe together.

“I think they will really push each other and this in turn will develop them both and the new Aprilia.

“We have testing planned for March and then we will be all set for Brands Hatch and hoping to get the season off to the best possible start. We are now looking forward to a consistent debut season.”

German manufacturer BMW enters BSB for the first time following their debut season in the World Superbike Championship in 2009, officially supporting the Jentin Racing team.

The Jentin Racing BMW squad will run a two rider team onboard the BMW S1000 RR with Steve Brogan aiming for the Evo title, while Richard Cooper will be seeking championship glory in the Metzeler National Superstock 1000 Championship.

Jentin Racing BMW team manager Bernie Toleman said: “I couldn’t be more pleased with the team we have for 2010.

“We have seen how determined Steve is to win, so I am expecting him to be fighting for the Evo title.

“I have been aware of Richard and his career and truly believe he is a star of the future, he has a strong association with BMW and his performances speak for themselves.

“It is a really exciting project for us to be running in both the Evo and Superstock classes and we are going to approach them both in the same way, as for us they are both as important as each other.

“This is the first time our team has had a direct link with a manufacturer and with BMW being such an iconic brand we intend on doing them justice during the season.”

KTM also recently announced their entry into the championship with Redline KTM progressing to the BSB Evo class with James Edmeades on the KTM RC8.

Redline KTM team owner Tim Walker said: “This is an exciting time for everyone involved in this project. Redline Motorcycles has been a KTM dealer for 18 years and racing has always been my passion so to enter the Evo class for this year is great news for us all.

“We don't doubt that this is a big project but we have been racing in the KTM one-make series for the past two seasons so to move to a different class is a natural progression.

“It is important to maintain the promotion of the KTM brand in BSB and maximise it to its full potential.”

For more information, visit britishsuperbike.com