Image: Supplied.

D34G Racing Team will retain Oli Bayliss for the 2024 Supersport World Championship (WorldSSP), to be joined by countryman Tom Edwards in the European-based ‘WorldSSP Challenge’ sub-category in an all-Australian roster.

At 20 years of age, Bayliss enters his third season in the world championship and second with the D34G team of Davide Giugliano onboard the Ducati Panigale V2.

“I’m really excited to be able to race together with the D34G Racing Team again,” Bayliss said. “Last year I wasn’t able to show my full speed due to injuries and some unlucky episodes. I really got on well with the whole team and I’m happy to have this new opportunity to show our real level of competitiveness. I would like to thank my sponsors, supporters and the entire D34G Racing Team for giving me this opportunity.”

As for 22-year-old Edwards, he was a standout in the WorldSSP Challenge this year riding Yamaha machinery, winning multiple races and now he’s excited to team up with Bayliss in a bid to further his career on the world stage.

“I look forward to this new chapter in my career with great anticipation,” Edwards commented. “Being able to join the D34G Team and work under Davide’s leadership represents an exciting opportunity. I am grateful to Davide for the support and for this opportunity. I am really confident that together we can achieve good results consistently.

“I’m excited to be able to race with the V2 and I believe this bike will adapt well to our riding style. It will also be great to have Oli as a teammate, I think we will be the first Australian teammates in Supersport and that’s really cool. It’s going to be a crazy year, I can’t wait to start the season.”

Giugliano added: “Obviously I’m really excited to start a new season and I can’t wait to get on track. I am very happy with the riders this year – we will continue with Oli and therefore for him it will be another season of growth and maximisation of the work done this year, which unfortunately was unlucky due to injuries. In any case, I’m happy with Oli and he certainly has all the trust of both me and the team.

“As for Edwards, I give him a warm welcome, and it will be interesting to see him on track with us. He has already shown good speed in the past and I believe that with our team he can aspire to good results. We’ll see how he goes once he gets on a Ducati. It will now be our task to put the riders in a position to be able to give their best, and it will also be interesting because it’s about having two compatriots on the same team.”