Stuart Easton insists the success of his 2009 British Superbike challenge will hinge on making a good start at Brands Hatch this weekend, but that doesn't mean he will throw caution to the wind.

The 25-year-old, from Hawick, who will ride for Hydrex Honda this year, had a difficult time last season as a promising start was undone at Snetterton in round five as a crash in practice left him with a broken wrist that kept him out of the next four rounds.

From then on Easton and his MSS Discovery Kawasaki failed to hit their early season heights with one top-ten finish in the final four rounds leaving the Scot in 13th place overall with 81 points, 62 of which were scored in the first four rounds.

And while Easton is determined to make a quick start this weekend he believes consistency will hold the key in his bid to challenge for honours in the latter stages of the season.

"I don't want to say too much but I think I can do a good job this season," said Easton, who won the Macau Grand Prix in November to deny Michael Rutter a record-breaking seventh success.

"Last year ended up being a bit of a disaster as I got injured midway through the season and the team was under funded so it was a tough one.

"But we showed brief moments of good results so I showed the potential is there.

"My crew chief Pete Jennings keeps telling me we need a steady start and a strong finish and take Brands as it comes and see where we are from there.

"In my past Supersport days, both long track and short track, a lot of my wins were at Brands. It is a good circuit for me but I think it will be extremely close time wise and anything could happen."