RYUICHI Kiyonari bade farwell to HM Plant Honda in October 2007 after winning the Bennetts British Superbikes championship for the second consecutive year.

He signed for Dutch-based team HANNspree Ten Kate to race in the 2008 World Superbikes championship.

Kiyonari, born in Saitama on September 23, 1982, came to live in Lincolnshire in 2004 when he was signed for HM Plant and, in his first season, finished sixth.

Despite winning 12 races in 2005, Kiyonari, who spent time out after injuring an ankle, had to settle for the runner-up position to ever-improving Spaniard Gregorio Lavilla on an Airwaves Ducati.

The same year Kiyo won the Suzuka 8-Hours race in partnership with Tohru Ukawa.

In a thrilling 2006 season, Kiyonari, aboard the factory Fireblade, went one better, pushing Leon Haslam into second place and relegating Lavilla to third.

He finished the 2007 season on 433 points, ahead of team-mate Jonathan Rea on 407 and Leon Haslam with 387.

Kiyo made his road racing debut in Japan in 1996 and in 2002 was the All-Japan Supersport Champion on a Honda.

In 2003 he graduated to the MotoGP world stage with the Gresini Honda team, finishing 19th from eight scoring races his best results 11th in Barcelona and Motegi, results that did not go unnoticed in England.