LEON Haslam is banking on an action replay of his dramatic victory at Croft last year to put his bid for the Bennetts British Superbike crown firmly on track this weekend.

Then the Airwaves Ducati rider pulled off an audacious last corner, last lap move at the North Yorkshire circuit to snatch the glory - it was a magical moment for the Derbyshire rider and it set him off on a run of form that took him to the sharp end of the title scrap, only to be denied at the final hurdle by Ryuichi Kiyonari.

Haslam is in a better position in the title stakes than he was on his previous visit to this circuit with its own brand of challenges.

He is currently third overall behind the HM Plant Honda duo of Kiyonari and the highly-talented Jonathan Rea.

They are fighting out their own high-speed duel for supremacy but in each of the previous two rounds they have both failed to finish and that has allowed the consistent Haslam to make up ground on them. He is now the only rider in the championship to have scored points in every round.

However, Haslam has enjoyed the winner's champagne only once so far this term, at Mondello Park in June, but from then he has taken podium finishes in four of the six races.

Importantly, in the previous round at Mallory Park he powered his Ducati to a third and then a second to move within 15 points of Rea and only 31 down on the series-leading Kiyonari.

"Considering that Mallory is one of our worst tracks I am over the moon that I have come here and pulled back 11 points on the championship leaders," said Haslam.

"Possibly I could have got two wins there but I was finding it really difficult to overtake so I have to be happy to go away with solid points and progress."

The three-week break since that round has enabled Haslam to recharge his batteries and ensure that he is mentally and physically fit for the challenges that lie ahead in the final third of the campaign.

"We've had a bit of a rest but now it's back to business and the start of the last leg of the season" he said.

"I am feeling good and we have some of my favourite circuits coming up; I think I will be able to put in some good performances in the next few rounds."

There are still 200 points to be played for, and with that in mind the chase is wide open, something that is not lost on his Airwaves team-mate, former champion Gregorio Lavilla, who is playing catch-up after a bout of mid-term blues.

Shane 'Shakey' Byrne has put himself into the frame with a first victory in over a year aboard the Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda, and he will be gunning for more, with his team-mate Tom Sykes also overdue success.

Adding to the front-running action expect to see Karl Harris, still disbelieving that Haslam managed to beat him in the corresponding round of last year, together with the Rizla Suzukis of Chris Walker and Cal Crutchlow.

Michael Rutter will have the boost of an upgraded engine in his Isilon MSS Discovery Kawasaki, while Tommy Hill needs a strong performance aboard the Virgin Media Optoma Loans Yamaha.

Rea, dominated free practice yesterday, being fastest in each session, and that despite a tumble during the afternoon, putting in a best lap of one minute 19.839 seconds at the 2.125-mile circuit.

Former champion Gregorio Lavilla, riding for Airwaves Ducati, closed within four-tenths of a second of him with Kiyonari third best with a lap of 1:20.358secs.

Haslam, aboard the second Airwaves bike, ran fourth, just ahead of Stobart Honda rider Tom Sykes and Crutchlow.

Around the Superbike action there is a packed supporting programme including three riders - Michael Laverty, Ian Lowry and Guisborough's Dennis Hobbs - scrapping it out for the Maxxis British Supersport title, the Metzeler Racetec National Superstock Championship and Cup action, British 125GP Championship and Virgin Media Cup racing.