SUPERBIKE star Neil Hodgson is at the centre of a tug-of-war for his services next season.

The Burnley rider has attracted the attention of Honda Europe following his brilliant performances at Donington and Brands Hatch.

They want to prise Hodgson out of Ducati's clutches and into the saddle of one of their SP-2 bikes, partnering reigning world champion Colin Edwards.

But Honda Europe's parent company in Japan is known to favour keeping their current number two Tadayuki Okada for 2002 - and they pay the bills for the racing team.

Honda Europe - which is run by ex-racer Neil Tuxworth - is desperate to get Hodgson on board because they believe his ability and popularity far exceeds that of Okada, especially in Europe.

Said Tuxworth: "Neil is a world champion of the future. Any factory team would be interested in him because he has been performing well this year."

Hodgson, meanwhile, is remaining tight-lipped about his future, preferring to concentrate on his current championship form.

"I have had no dealings with anything to do with next year - other people are negotiating for me," he said.

"All I want to do is concentrate on getting into the top three at the end of the year."

The situation is complicated by his current contract with GSE Ducati. Hodgson has an option to stay with the team next year -and if owner Darrell Healey can secure the same factory bikes for 2002 as Troy Bayliss and Ben Bostrom, he may well decide to stay put.

Ducati bosses have also been impressed with Hodgson's comeback season in world superbikes and see him as one of their best hopes for the future.