Source: Supplied.

An assortment of leading Australian racers will line up at the 40th Coca-Cola Suzuka 8 Hours on 28-30 July, led by MotoGP race winner Jack Miller as he makes his FIM Endurance World Championship (EWC) debut on a Superbike with MuSASHi RT HARC-PRO Honda.

Miller will join Japanese duo Takumi Takahashi – a three-time winner at Suzuka – and Moto2 regular Takaaki Nakagami aboard the factory CBR1000RR SP2 in what is the final year of his Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) contract.

“I’m excited to be racing for the first time at the Suzuka 8 hours race with a highly competitive Honda team, MuSASHi HARC-PRO Honda,” Miller said. “Endurance races are different to other road races and this will be a great opportunity for me. I’ll be aiming for the top of the podium, battling a tough race, along with a very talented, competitive team.”

Also Honda-mounted in the annual classic will be British Superbike front-runner Jason O’Halloran with the Honda DREAM RT Sakurai squad with Ryo Mizuno, plus 2015 podium finisher Josh Hook will be at Team SuP Dream Honda alongside Shinichi Ito and Gregg Black.

F.C.C. TSR Honda has opted to field the all-star line-up of Stefan Bradl and Dominique Aegerter, however the third rider remains to be announced. Both Hook and countryman Damian Cudlin have been regulars in that team during the full 2016/2017 season.

Yoshimura Suzuki will welcome back multi-time podium finisher Josh Brookes, the versatile former Australian and British champion entering the new GSX-R after finishing third last year. He will team up with local talent Takuya Tsuda and 2014 world champion Sylvain Guintoli.

“The Suzuka 8 Hours is very important to me and I have always had aspirations of winning here,” Brookes said. “It is a great privilege to be invited to join Yoshimura Suzuki again this year and after our podium success together in 2013 and 2016, I’m really looking forward to riding the new bike and aiming for the top step together again this year.”

Another former Suzuka podium placer and Australian champion on the grid will be Team Suzuki Ecstar’s Josh Waters, joining Nobuatsu Aoki and Yoshihiro Konno at MotoMap Supply Suzuki for the second year in a row. Defending world champions and current points leaders Suzuki Endurance Racing Team (SERT) is yet to list Australian regular Alex Cudlin for the event on the official entry list.

Previously announced to be forming the second factory Yamaha effort at Suzuka will be the YART Yamaha Official EWC Team battling full-time for the 2017 title. It will field Australian Broc Parkes, Marvin Fritz and rising Japanese star Kohta Nozane.

Ex-World Superbike and World Supersport campaigner Mark Aitchison has been announced as part of teamJP DFR & RS-ITOH Kawasaki, while the current entry list remains to be finalised and could potentially include additional Australians in the field.