‘WHAT a difference a year makes’ is one of those ubiquitous sayings perhaps devalued by its widespread use.

However, in the case of Dorset motorcycling prodigy Brad Jones that difference is quite literally a knife-edge between life and death.

Rewind 12 months and Jones, now 24, was on top of his game having risen to compete in British Superbikes – the pinnacle of the sport in this country.

Grappling with the step up in standard, Jones was showing promising signs of being able to cope at Britain’s highest level by the time the championship reached Brands Hatch.

Little did he know it, his life was about to change on the opening lap of the first race as he 'high-sided' on the exit of Clark Curve and hurtled into the barriers at high speed.

Jones was unconscious and airlifted to hospital with a catalogue of serious injuries and later placed in an induced coma.

Chief among them were a bleed on the brain, a fractured pelvis, broken ribs and punctures to both lungs.

His pelvis required surgery and it took several weeks before he was woken from the coma and able to converse with his family, who were constantly by his bedside.

Jones is remarkably upbeat as he begins to tick the final boxes on his way to making an astonishing full recovery.

“It’s been a hectic 12 months, I would say,” Jones told Echosport in typically humorous fashion.

“It’s been hard but very rewarding at the same time. Where I’m at now is that everything physically is really good.

“I’ve replaced racing motorbikes with racing pushbikes for now and I’m really enjoying it. It’s really brought my fitness on and brought my lungs back to where they were before.

“Cycling-wise I’m stronger than I was. The thing I have struggled with a lot is short-term memory, but that’s got a lot better in the last six weeks.

“Each week I’m making improvements, whether it be memory, mood, anxiety, stress. We’re just moving forward all the time and I’m still having physio once a month. I can’t complain.”

Understandably, Jones has no memory of the accident – or either side of it.

“The points that are clear are probably from November onwards,” he admitted.

“Prior to that, it’s very vague. My superbike memories are vague, therefore my memories of the accident are non-existent.

“Memories of me being at that weekend are very, very vague. I can’t really remember being there. The only way I can is by seeing pictures I took on my phone, cycling the track the day before.

“Unfortunately, my superbike memories are very foggy. I suppose your brain blocks out trauma, so I can’t remember the accident at all.

“I can remember being in hospital but I couldn’t tell you what I was doing. I suppose that also comes down to the amount of medication I was on!

“That being said, I’ve never been in any pain, which is a good thing.

“Maybe a little uncomfortable with my shoulder and pelvis but other than that I’ve not really been in what I would call excruciating pain. On that front, I’ve been very lucky.”

The nature of Jones’ accident rocked the British Superbikes paddock and community, with a fundraiser gathering around £40,000 and the hashtag #KeepFightingBrad shared on social media.

Jones still enjoys strong support from British Superbikes and was last weekend seen at Donington Park among friend and World Supersport rider Patrick Hobelsberger’s entourage.

World Supersport forms part of the undercard for World Superbikes, in which his close friend Scott Redding rides.

Jones has retained his enthusiasm for the sport simply by often visiting race weekends.

His presence watching from the paddock is part of his new normal, including a full-time position within his family’s plumbing and heating business.

“I went back to that at a staged return set out by the hospital after a few months of being at home,” he said.

“I went back being full-time in January, February time. When I was racing I was working part-time, so I haven’t actually worked full-time for a couple of years!

“At first it was hard, very tiring. Then I got my driving licence back and it feels all normal again, just getting my confidence back with it.

“I was doubting myself a lot whether I’d remembered to do stuff. That’s all got better now.”

And any doubt Jones has over whether he can return to racing will be answered later this month when he navigates his first track time since the crash.

“I’ll be back on a bike and I’ll probably have to ride again after that,” he revealed.

“I’ll probably ride a couple of times and then I’m going to have to make a decision whether I make a return or not.

“If I was to have two seasons of not racing that’s kind of it done. You can’t really take two years out of this sport and then go back. One year’s bad enough, let alone two.

“A racing return is basically dependant on how my feeling on the bike is when I ride again.”

With the warrior-like strength Jones has shown to recover from his injuries, who would bet against the Stalbridge man to successfully recover his motorcycling career, too?