The Devon rider has a new bike for his Quay Garage Racing team, and♚ has al🍌so gone under the knife in an effort to finally cure his ankle problems caused by a huge accident at Oulton Park in 2006.

That fall left him with two broken ankles, ruling him out of the 2006 seas🧸on and putting him in considerable pain for the majority of the 2007 campaign💛.

But before Christmas, Buckingham went to Leeds where BSB ൩doctor Toby Branfoot performed an operatioไn to graft some bone from his pelvis to his injured ankle.

"I rode all last year with a hole in the bone," said the 23-year-old. "I thought it would heal as the year went on but it did🍨n't.

"There was a lot of scar tissue and it got between the bone 🧸and stopped the break fusing back together.

"I had an x-ray on it🍸 half way through las༺t season and it was still there, so we had to operate.

"𒐪At the moment꧅, the ligaments are still a bit tight but the bone feels a lot better already."

The injury recuperation has combined with the arrival of a ne🍨w bike and bad weather to make it a frustrating winter for the Braunton-based team.

They only received their new Honda Fireblade CBR1000RR a fortnight ago, and were unable to visit 🐓the intended testing sessions at Valencia in Spain.

"The main problem is the lack of testing going into the first round at Brands," Buckingham added.
"We went up to Snetterton but it snowed, so we've only taꩵken it out on a runway at Chivenor and then got three good sessions in at Mallory Park.

"For the first two rounds this season, we're going to do what we can. We'll try and finish in🅠 th𝓰e top 15 and win the privateers' class.

"Towards mid-season,﷽ hopefully we'll be getting into the top 10."

The Ilfracombe rider will have a preꦇtty experienced engin🐲e underneath him - he will be riding the Honda used by former BSB champion Gregorio Lavilla in the opening two rounds of this year's World Superbike Championship.

And the team have gained more sponsors🎐hip from oil gian🙈ts Q8 Oils, Gregory Distribution and the Devon Cider Company, who join up with Quay Garage Racing's existing backers.

Buckingham won the British Superbike Cup in 2005 and earned himself a one-off ride witꦉh Rizla Suzuki in that year's final round at Brands Hatch.

However since then, ankle injuries have ꦉstopped his bid to secure a works ride and also denied him the chance to ride for Phase One Yamaha in the Japanese round of t🐟he World Endurance Championship in 2006.