THE impact of this weekend's British Motocross Grand Prix will be felt in Southampton long before its first staging at the Matterley Bowl near Winchester.

A high octane motocross procession hits Southampton City Centre tomorrow when 26 spectacular competition motorbikes will take to the streets for a procession over lunchtime to give the south a taste of what's in store when the FIM World Championship MX1 and MX2 of which the British event is the eighth round comes to Hampshire.

Police outriders and a squad car will escort the procession on a special route through the city centre to promote the grand prix and give an idea of the excitement lined up.

After the procession there will be a freestyle MX display at Below Bar with riders performing jumps and stunts.

The Matterley Bowl, which is better known for dance and rock festivals like Homelands and Hi-Fi South, should offer great vantage points for watching the racing.

The track, off the A31, has been specially created by top motocross designer Johnny Douglas Hamilton who has taken account of the natural amphitheatre shape of the Bowl to give spectators the best views and build in table top jumps, downhill drops and fast corners to challenge the riders.

Stefan Everts will be fighting hard to clinch his tenth world title before he retires, while Stephen Sword will be leading the British challenge.

The procession is due to leave the Bargate at 1pm for the 20-minute tour of the city.

The route will be from the Bargate into the High Street, left into Bernard Street, left into Queensaway and will turn at the second exit at the roundabout into Hanover Buildings.

From here the route will turn right into Vincents Walk, left into Poundtree Road, right into Above Bar Street, left into Civic Centre Road, left into Portland Terrace and across the roundabout into Castle Way. The route will then finally lead left into West Street, left into the High Street and then back to the Bargate.

In addition to the procession there will be display units at the Bargate with the chance to meet riders and buy MXGP tickets. One lucky shopper will have the opportunity to win a family pass for the weekend.

Tickets are available from www.06MX.com, by calling 0845 4566536, or on the day at a venue signposted from the M3 onto the A31.