Still suffering from injuries sustained from a crash at the Brazil GP, the gutsy Southlander had just four days before he was back on track at the Circuit of the Americas in Texas at the weekend.
Despite the pain, Buchanan opted to compete and finished 19th.
“When you’re dealing with a lot of lower back and rib pain, it makes it very hard and, as the weekend went on, it got worse and worse so I couldn’t ride the bike how I wanted to.
Left unable to perform to his potential at one of his favourite tracks was a cruel blow for Buchanan, who earned his first top-10 finish at the Circuit of the Americas last year.
“We need to stick to the positives. I know this result doesn’t reflect me because I’m riding at about 45% fitness and in this class you really do need to be at 100% to make an impact,” he said.
Buchanan returned to his Barcelona base to prepare for the next round at Jerez, Spain.
“For me, these next three weeks are crucial to be able to recover properly because I haven’t had a chance to do that yet, which has really taken its toll,” he said.
“I know when I’m fit, I’m fast. When I’m fully fit I will be ready to fight back at the front like we showed in the early stages of Brazil. The speed is there, I have no doubts about that — I just need to make sure my body is ready for the fight because this weekend it wasn’t.
