Steve Plater and Anthony West head new World Endurance squad

Reigning British Supersport champion and 2009 Senior TT winner Steve Plater is expected to lead an assault on this year’s World Endurance series with former factory Kawasaki MotoGP rider Anthony West.

Plater and West are poised to ride in a new Belgian team led by former factory Kawasaki MotoGP boss Michael Bartholemy.

Aussie Damian Cudlin will be the third rider in the team, which is expected to be backed by fuel giant Elf. The squad is understood to have done a deal to use Honda FireBlade machinery.

Bartholemy will be back in the MotoGP paddock in 2010 too with the Belgian at the helm of the new Marc VDS Moto2 squad that has signed British rider Scott Redding for the forthcoming season.

The World Endurance series kicks off at Le Mans on April 17 and there are further races Albecete, Suzuka, Magny-Cours and Qatar.