BRADLEY Smith is relishing his comeback as he continues his build-up to a return to action this weekend.

The Oxfordshire MotoGP rider will take his place in the Japanese Grand Prix line-up, after missing just three races with a serious knee injury.

Experts thought it would be a minimum of eight weeks before Smith would be able to get back on a bike after undergoing surgery early in September.

But the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider, from Forest Hill, has proved them wrong and will race in Motegi.

“I am excited about jumping back on my YZR-M1,” Smith said.

“Even though I know it will be a challenging race, I am determined and I will do my very best.

“Though I am almost fit, it will take me a bit of time to fully adjust to being back.

“This will be the initial goal of the weekend, but I am confident I can quickly get up to speed again.

“I know this weekend will be physically demanding due to the stop and go nature of the circuit, plus, there are a lot of hard braking corners.

“But I am certain we can start the flyaway races positively.”