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Set in the mountainous landscape of Alcaniz, the European Superstock 1000 engines will spring to life for the first time of 2017, and once again the cut and thrust racing should be some of the most exciting throughout the season. Last year the title battle went down to the wire with Raffaele de Rosa claiming the crown after a technical failure for Tati Mercado before the start of the final race of the season. It was a sad end to a great battle between the pair but who can we expect to be impressed by in 2017?

First run in 1999, the STK1000 series is renowned amongst fans and riders alike for the stunning racing action. The closest finish in the series came in 2007 at Monza, with 0.008s separating Matteo Baiocco and Mark Aitchison, and this isn’t a rare occurrence in the series; at least ten victories have been secured by under 0.09s. Hailing a total of 16 different champions over the years, many of whom have gone on to compete in WorldSBK it’s clear it serves as a strong feeder class for the world of racing.

Taking on the fierce field this season is a host of names who have a varied experience within the class, but when the 34 riders are hurtling into the opening corner around MotorLand Aragon all bets will be off. We take a look at a few riders to keep an eye on in the 2017 season.

Toprak Razgatlioglu Last year the Turkish rider was the highest profile rookie in the STK1000 class but missed the opening two rounds of the year through injury. The 20 year old crashed during practice at Phillip Island while replacing an injured Josh Hook and was on the back foot for the rest of the season. Even so he was a constant top five rider in STK1000 and finished the season with a brace of podiums. The former STK600 champion will be expected to be a front runner from the outset in 2017 and his first victory is likely to come in the early rounds.

Mike Jones The Australian will make his STK1000 debut at Aragon but with MotoGP and WorldSBK starts to his name the 2015 Australian SBK champion is certainly one of the riders to watch throughout the coming season. Racing for the Aruba.it Ducati squad the machinery at his disposal will be top of the line and having come so close to the title in 2016 with Mercado the team will be out to prove their credentials this year. In his first season of European competition the recently turned 23 year old will be out to impress and use this year as a stepping stone to a WorldSBK ride for 2018.

Michael Rinaldi The 21 year old made his STK1000 debut at Aragon last year and impressed immediately with rostrum finishes at the opening two rounds. The season proved to be a struggle from that point onwards for the Italian but with Ducati having won three races in 2016 the Panigale will arguably be the bike to beat this year. Rinaldi showed good speed in qualifying last year and finished the season with a string of second row starts but he will know that making progress in quaifying and avoiding mistakes in the opening laps will be the key to a strong campaign for the former STK600 race winner.

Max Scheib Last year Scheib surprised everyone by winning the final race of the STK1000 season as a one event rider at Jerez. The Chilian will step up to the series full-time this year having been runner-up in the CEV Superbike championship last year where he was narrowly beaten to the title but claimed ten podiums from 11 races. With previous CEV Moto2 experience the 21 year old has had a varied career to this point but looks primed to show his potential this year aboard the Aprilia.

Kevin Calia Having finished on the podium three times in the last two years Calia will be hoping to finally break the duck this year and claim his first win. With the Suzuki GSXR-1000 he should have one of the best bikes in the field and will start the season confident that he could add another title to his CV to go with his 2012 CIV Moto3 championship. Last year the 22 year old won races in the Italian Superbike championship and having been a podium finisher at Imola and Misano he will be a rider to watch on home soil.