Kirkham looking to put `05 behind him with Jentin.

It has been difficult twelve months for Jon Kirkham, after having to cope with an injury to his finger that required surgery and the loss of his place at the Sendo Kawasaki team with which he spent the first half of 2005 of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship.

However, the Derby rider is set to beat a comeback trail to the BSB this year having joined Jentin Racing for the 2006 season and he is hoping that a fresh start will help put his disastrous year behind him.

"I have signed up for a team called Jentin, which is a smaller, less glamorous team but it is a brilliant team," Kirkham told Crash.Net Radio. "They won the privateer Superbike Cup in 2004 and we have got two of the Suzuki's from 2005 that James Haydon rode and were fastest at Brands Hatch in qualifying, so they are good bikes. It should be a good year - a better year than I had in 2005."

Indeed, Kirkham admits that while he experienced a promising start to the year, a chain of events that included his crash and the loss of title sponsors Sendo, meant he would struggle to recover his competitiveness.

"The season started off good. We had a late start, about two weeks before the first race but we had a few good results. Then I had an unfortunate accident at Croft, where I severed a tendon in my little finger and then the team lost the title sponsorship, so it just went a bit pear-shaped. When I returned I just found it hard work with the bike."

Speaking of his crash, Kirkham did not realise the damning effect the injury would have on his career. "My finger is as good as it will be. I thought my little finger would be a minor injury but it turned out to be quite bad. I had two operations on it and as soon as it turns cold, it turns white!"

Nonetheless, Kirkham is going into 2006 with renewed confidence with a team that too has had a difficult past season, with the first round at Brands Hatch his target for a finish that can beat previous efforts.

"My best result so far in Superbikes is fifth and I have had quite a few top ten results, so I want to beat that really. Every year you look to beat your year before results but it seems to get harder every year," he continued.

"Brands Hatch Indy is a hard but good circuit because everyone qualifies about half a second apart, so if you are little bit out then it could be the difference between tenth and 20th. I have had some good results there in the past, so I am looking forward to it."

With the start of the season still some two months away, Kirkham admits that Jentin are still looking for sponsors, something he is keen to broadcast. "We are looking at sponsors right now, so if there is anyone out there who wants something on the bike, then get in touch!"