Image: Russell Colvin.

Outgoing Australian Superbike champion Mike Jones is confident he could challenge for the title once again in 2017 if he remains with the DesmoSport Ducati team, after a mixed first year on board the 1299 Panigale S.

Jones displayed pace from the outset in the team co-owned by three-time world champion Troy Bayliss and Ben Henry, claiming second on debut alongside a WorldSBK cameo at Phillip Island. The highlight came with Superpole and a race win at Barbagallo.

However despite stepping on the podium at three of the six rounds overall, a number of technical glitches in the development of the ASBK-spec entry bumped Jones down the order to finish fifth in the point-standings.

The Winton round marked a mixed end to the championship season for Jones, once again showcasing his outright speed with a front-row qualifying position in Superpole, however he finished seventh and ninth in Sunday’s races for seventh overall. Race two was plagued by an early off-track excursion.

“We’ve had some ups and downs here at Winton’s final round,” Jones reflected. “The high point was qualifying on the front row of the grid in the Pirelli Superpole, where I managed to go in third position.

“I had some issues during the races and couldn’t quite convert that pace into a podium result, but overall it’s been a very good year for gaining experience. When everything is on track, we’ve definitely been quick, it’s just a matter of achieving that consistently. That’s the tricky part at this point, but I think if we keep working at it and if we’re able to have another crack at it in 2017, we’ll be able to get that consistency and be fast for the whole year.”

The return of Jones to another full season in Australia – almost certainly with the Queensland-based DesmoSport Ducati squad – is the favoured option at this point, despite initially being linked to an international ride with Ducati earlier in the year.