Features 24 Nov 2015

Industry Insight: TBE's Troy Bayliss

WorldSBK legend on motoSBK series and DesmoSport Ducati team.

Triple World Superbike Champion announced at last weekend’s Sydney Motorcycle Show that he will become an integral part of Australian road racing from 2016, launching a new 2016/2017 motoSBK-titled ASBK summer series alongside the DesmoSport Ducati team fielding reigning Australian Superbike Champion Mike Jones. CycleOnline.com.au discussed the challenges that lay ahead following the announcements.

Image: Alex Gobert (Foremost Media).

Image: Alex Gobert (Foremost Media).

Troy, it’s been announced at the Sydney Motorcycle Show that you’re running a summer series with Motorcycling Australia as of late next year, motoSBK. With your involvement, you must be pretty excited?

Yeah, there has been a bit of talk going on this year, but we feel like it’s time to have a crack at it. I cut my teeth here in Australia doing the 250 Production and Supersport, then moved onto the Superbikes. I just feel like it’s time we try and build on the championship. Of course with Troy Bayliss Events (TBE) coming in and doing the promotion of it, between Motorcycling Australia, RACESAFE and [MX Nationals director] Kevin Williams, I think working together we can help bring the championship back to its glory days and hopefully make it stronger.

Most of the fans know you as Troy Bayliss the WorlSBK champion and MotoGP race winner, but since retirement, as part of Troy Bayliss Events you have been heavily involved in the expo side of things, the Bayliss Classic and a lot of dirt track events. It’s a pretty diverse range of experience, so for you and the company itself, it’s a nice platform to work from to really take on this ASBK challenge.

It’s funny how it’s all come about. After retiring at the end of 2008, you go through a period of where you just want to take it easy for a while and I did that for a couple of years, before in the end we became involved with Mark Petersen. Our life has been motorcycles all along, so we decided to have a crack at taking on the motorcycle shows. Through this, Kim [Bayliss] has gained so much experience over the last few years doing this, working alongside Mark – I’ve been the face of it, while they do all the hard work, moreso than me, but everyone says that I have done a great job. It’s a big deal where everybody works together and that’s how I see the championship, us taking over ASBK. It’s not just Troy Bayliss. There are a lot of people that put in and make this look good and successful, and that goes with the Troy Byaliss Classic as well. We have got some good people working alongside us and we really look forward to the challenge. Like I said before, I hope we can make it work and that will make it feel like that we have had a win. So it’s not that much different to actually racing a bike really when something works.

In terms of the superbikes, I know you said you couldn’t say too much yet, but when did it sort of come reality? It’s Motorcycling Australia’s series and there is a belief that it should be the premier series in Australia, so when did it become a reality for you that, okay let’s do this and take it on?

Well actually about three years ago I thought about it and spoke to Warren Lee at Ducati and I thought about getting involved with a Ducati team. At the time we thought it wasn’t a good idea, so basically you could say I’ve had my mind on the championship and been thinking about a few things from a few years ago. Now, a lot of things have changed and even in the last few months a lot of things have happened and it’s made us decide this is what we want to do. A lot of that has to do with some of the changes in Motorcycling Australia, which gives us a bit of a confidence to get out there and give it a go. A lot of people have said ‘be careful’. Okay, I’m a bit nervous, but also I can’t see why it can’t work, so we are going to go out there and give it a nudge. Like I said before, I believe there are some straight shooters in there at the moment. If everybody we work with has got the same ideas as what we have, well not ideas, but same drive to make it work, it will.

The BSB is obviously as strong as ever, MotoAmerica has Wayne Rainey’s involvement, and then WorldSBK more recently has been taken over by Dorna. Do you look overseas at different elements? I suppose it would be a mixture of that and relying on TBE’s own experience locally in terms of what you guys do here, because it’s all very different worldwide.

Yeah, if you look at it on how it’s all been going in the last few years, remember AMA was the strongest domestic championship and it was crazy; it’s sort of in its slums and they are trying to bring it back. BSB is absolutely thriving, the IDM championship seems to have gotten stronger, where we’re on the rebuild again. If we can just make it back to where it was good as where it was that would be okay, but I want to make it better. We are going to be trying, that’s for sure. However there is a lot of work ahead and we just have to put our head down and keep on working.

Image: Alex Gobert (Foremost Media).

Image: Alex Gobert (Foremost Media).

And also it was announced, the DesmoSport Ducati team with Ben Henry’s involvement and Mike Jones the rider on a 1299 Panigale S. It’s a nice step for yourself and the sport in a lot of ways when it comes to Ducati’s factory involvement.

I’m excited about this. Warren [Lee, NF Importers CEO] and I spoke about this three years ago, but at the time we didn’t think it was right. Now it’s come around and we think it is the right time. We’ve aligned with Ben, who has done a great job with what he’s had to work with in the past, as well as Mike and the riders – I have been helping out young Robbie Menzies as well. Ben being involved in the team so long, knowing the ins and outs, plus my knowledge with the backing of Ducati and other supporters makes for a good line-up. It’s out there now and we’re keen as, we just have to work away and do it together properly now.

Mike is the defending ASBK champion and, not only that, but wins races against the factory teams in FX as well. He’s a clear talent and really good guy…

Yeah, he is. I actually rode with Mike years and years ago, out at Lakeside I was on one of our two-up bikes and he was riding around. I thought he was getting around pretty good. I’ve gotten to know him pretty well of late and I knew he was fast, but I really took notice of him at the GP when I was down there and he impressed me a lot. So, we were happy to have Mike as our number one choice and glad he wants to be with us in this team. He knows Ben well and I think he’s a bit excited to jump on the Ducati and give it a go.

The initial part of next year is the independent ASBK series and then it’s TBE’s motoSBK series under your guidance. The team will be competing in both then?

That’s going to be our building blocks and then we’ll step into the new era. But I honestly believe that straight up, February next year, will be a big step better than what we’ve seen in the past. It’s all taking shape.

So in terms of the series involvement, you’ll observe everything closely and be involved to an extent in the initial ASBK as well?

Yes, Ben will be team manager of DesmoSport Ducati, and I plan to be at every race myself. Kim and Mark Petersen, our business partner, will be going to a lot of the races as well, taking everything into account and obviously checking it all out as closely as we can.

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