McWilliams struggled to make an impact with KR Proton this year

Ulsterman Jeremy McWilliams has signed for the Italian Aprilia MotoGP team where he will have British Superbike Champion Shane Byrne as his team-mate in 2004.

McWilliams will replace former World Superbike Champion Colin Edwards in the team after riding for the Banbury-based Proton KR MotoGP team for the last two years.

The 39 year-old Belfast racer is no stranger to Aprilia, having secured his one and only grand prix victory at the 2001 250cc Dutch TT at Assen riding for the Italian factory.

"I'm really up for the fight next year after signing this contract," said McWilliams.

"I'm very excited about rejoining a factory team like Aprilia.

"I'm sure we can make the bike competitive, especially as we are using Michelin tyres.

"It's a great move for me and their bike this year was certainly more competitive than what I was riding".

I found the Aprilia bike really enjoyable to ride Shane Byrne

Last season McWilliams worked hard to develop the new four-stroke Proton KR machine together with team-mate Nobuatsu Aoki.

Doubts about what tyres the team will be using next season were a major factor in his move to Aprilia, who will be using Michelin.

Edwards finished 13th in the MotoGP World Championship last season on the Aprilia before joining championship runner-up Sete Gibernau in the Telefonica Movistar Honda team for next year.

Both McWilliams and Byrne will be testing the RS3 Aprilia MotoGP machines in the next few weeks.

Byrne tried the machine for the first time at Jerez last week and was very impressed.

"I loved it and it wasn't the handful I'd been expecting but it was so, so fast," revealed the 27-year-old Kent rider.

"Physically I was surprised because I expected it to be pulling my arms off, but I found it really enjoyable to ride".