Image: Keith Muir.

Yamaha-mounted privateer Michael Blair will transfer to the Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK) fulltime in 2017 following an impressive first year aboard the YZF-R1.

Blair finished runner-up in the Australasian Superbike Championship (ASC) last year while also contesting the Asia Road Racing Championship riding an R6, ruling him out of the ASBK due to scheduling conflicts.

However in 2017 Blair has cleared his calendar to concentrate on the ASBK series against the factory teams and a number of top-level satellite efforts, carrying high hopes into next month’s season-opener at Phillip Island on 24-26 February.

“We’re planning on doing the ASBK on a Yamaha and the plan is to be up the front,” Blair told CycleOnline.com.au. “We’re putting our focus into ASBK as a number of Asian rounds clash again, so that’s what we have chosen to do.

“Last year was a really good way to learn on the Superbike [in the ASC], because it wasn’t too full-on or serious. I could still focus on Asia while learning the Superbike here, so coming into this year I’m feeling confident and comfortable – it should be interesting.

“We really got a good setting at Sydney’s final round, so especially having someone at the level of Josh Brookes there to chase around was good – I learnt a lot really quickly. It was a great way to finish the year.”

It was also confirmed prior to the Christmas holidays that Australasian champion Robbie Bugden will crossover to the ASBK with Kawasaki BCperformance in 2017.