Did he really retire? Tory Bayliss steps back onto the race tracks in his native country
“I definitely feel like I have some unfinished business,” Troy Bayliss, 48, on his (second) return to racing after what we guess was a restless retirement. This time, he’s competing for the Number 1 title in the Australian Superbike Championship with his own DesmoSport Ducati team.
(Image: Fox Sports)
His first retirement stint was at the end of 2007 after winning his third WorldSBK title but, naturally, as all other racers have done, stepped back onto the race tracks with his Ducati squad in 2016 for a two-race coda, replacing a then-injured Davide Guigliano.
Over a decade of no professional racing and Bayliss still snagged a top-ten finish, a very-few seconds behind his teammate, Chaz Davies. After that, he slipped back into the comfortable sheets of retirement.
He probably wasn’t able to sleep peacefully since as he’s back (again) for the Superbike Championship in his native country. The 48-year-old Australian mentioned that although he was ready to see a younger racer compete on the bike, he felt he “needed” to contest the championship and try and win the elusive Australian Superbike title for himself.
“I have a bit of work to do in terms of fitness,” Bayliss added. “But after testing the bike and running it at the Adelaide Motorsport Festival I feel I am definitely up to the task.”
Ben Henry, co-owner of DesmoSport Ducati with Bayliss, said of his friend and business partner, “I’m looking forward to creating the environment around Troy that I believe will help secure us another Australian Superbike Championship in 2018.”
The 2018 seasons of the Australian Superbike Championship starts on Feb. 23 at Phillip Island. Will you be watching?