Image: Russell Colvin.

Double Australian Superbike champion Jamie Stauffer will make a comeback to competition at next weekend’s Coca-Cola Suzuka 8 Hours in Japan.

Stauffer will partner fellow Australian Jason O’Halloran and Japanese racer Ryo Mizuno at the Honda Dream RT Sakurai Honda team.

It will mark Stauffer’s fifth appearance with the high-profile Honda outfit, in which he rode with in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. He’s travelling to Japan tonight in preparation for the 30 July race.

“I’ll be flying out tonight and will spend the week leading up to the race in Japan,” Stauffer told CycleOnline.com.au. “I was a little bit under-prepared for testing, it was only the week before that they asked if I could go and I hadn’t ridden since the GP last year, so it went pretty good.

“I can go a bit faster yet, should be able to keep a pretty good race pace and it should be alright. We’ll share the stints – Jason and Ryo are going pretty quick – and I should be consistent in the race as well. I’m looking forward to it actually! I obviously want to ride when the right opportunity is there.”

With his domestic contract not renewed at Crankt Protein Honda Racing at the conclusion of last season and with little opportunity to return full-time locally, Stauffer has expressed interest in a potential Endurance World Championship (EWC) start into 2018. Suzuka marks the last race of the current EWC season.

Australia has an expansive line-up of riders scheduled to contest the 40th anniversary of the Japanese classic, with Stauffer and the ever-versatile Anthony West (Akeno Speed Yamaha) the latest additions on the provisional entry list.