Source: Supplied.

Damian Cudlin will join Japanese endurance specialists F.C.C. TSR Honda at the opening round of the 2016 Endurance World Championship, the Le Mans 24 Hour in France.

The experienced Australian and three-time EWC runner-up will make his return to the world championship and take his place alongside Japanese SBK star Kazuma Watanabe and French Moto3 rising talent Alan Techer.

Awaiting his debut test aboard the FCC Honda in Japan scheduled later this month, Cudlin is eager to join the most exciting new entrant in the Endurance World Championship.

“I’m thrilled to be riding for F.C.C. TSR and I’m thankful for the opportunity,” Cudlin said. “Every EWC racer knows the F.C.C. TSR as one of the strongest teams at the Suzuka 8 Hour race and they’ve long had my respect.”

“24-hour races like Le Mans are extremely challenging, but I feel that the F.C.C. TSR team have the potential to run at the front immediately. My teammates are both young exciting riders, who make me feel a bit old now, but I’ll use my EWC experience and help the team achieve the best result possible!”

Cudlin’s inclusion will be his 14th year of EWC competition, since making his debut in Italy in 2002 where he finished fourth as a teenager: “I’ve experienced a lot of highs and a lot of lows in endurance racing over the years, but the grueling challenge of the sport keeps me coming back again and again,” he added.

“I don’t know how many times I’ve questioned my sanity during a 24-hour race at 4:00am in the morning, but the satisfaction of standing on the podium at the end is worth all the pain. I hope to feel that again with F.C.C. TSR!”

The 2016 Endurance World Championship will kick off at Le Mans in France on 9-10 April.