Image: Russell Colvin.

Kyle Buckley has confirmed he’ll make his return to the 2019 Motul Pirelli Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK) at Winton this weekend, where he’ll reunite with Kawasaki BCperformance in a deal that will see him pilot the ZX-10RR throughout the final three rounds.

Buckley, a former long-time member of the squad until the conclusion of 2018, rejoined the outfit for a shakedown test at Winton last month, prompting the team to draft him in for the remainder of the year in place of outgoing rider Lachlan Epis.

“It’s really cool to be back with BCperformance and I think it’s a really good opportunity for me,” Buckley explained to CycleOnline.com.au. “The only drama is I haven’t really ridden much this year – I just did the test at Winton, and that was a bit of an eye-opener for me with trying to get back up to speed. I’m really looking forward to it and I’m doing everything possible to make sure I’m in the best shape possible.

“If I was in my best shape possible, I think I could probably run close to the top five, but if I can finish inside the top 10 this weekend, I’ll be pretty happy with that. Considering everything over the last 12 months, inside the top 10 would be realistic for me, but the top five is what I’m aiming for.”

Epis initially replaced Buckley for the 2019 ASBK series, leaving him without a ride for this season, however Epis and BCperformance recently parted ways, just four rounds into the series. The Queenslander will once again join team regular Bryan Staring.