TROY BAYLISS - DUCATI MARLBORO #21

Troy was born on the 30th March 1969, the only son of Warren and Lorraine and his childhood years were spent on the family farm in Taree, New South Wales, Australia with his sister, Janna.
At the age of 6, Troy's father gave him a "Monkey" bike to ride around the farm and by the age of 10 he had decided it was time to go racing! For the next 4 years he traveled the circuits with his father racing in motocross and dirt track events.
His love of action sports then led Troy towards surfing and he spent all his spare time on the beach. He met his future wife, Kim, at the age of 18 and his craze for physical fitness made him to turn his competitive spirit towards cycle racing.
What kind of cycle racing? All kinds of cycle racing! Mountain bike, speed trials, triathlon… if it had pedals, Troy raced it!
In 1992, the attraction of motorcycle racing was too great for Troy to resist and he returned to motorcycle racing but this time round he would try his hand at road racing.
His first races were on his ZXR750 street bike but he thought that he had better "get serious" and change it for a 250 Sports Production bike.

He rode the Kawasaki KR1 in the 250 Sports Production class and was soon winning Club events. By the end of the year he entered a few Australian National Sports Production races and won those too. This was fun!
1993 was a busy year for Troy not only because he wanted to move up to a bigger bike but also because he married his girlfriend, Kim!
Having discovered the thrill of racing on circuits, and being eager to start moving up the ladder, Troy raced a Kawasaki 600 and progressed to competing in a few Australian national events by the end of the year.
In 1994 Troy rode the same bike to 6th in the Australian National 600 Championship and won the 600 race at Bathurst.
Troy was, by now, proving that he was a force to be reckoned with in Australia and in 1995 he confirmed that reckoning by taking 2nd place in the championship.
By 1996 it was time for Troy to move up another step and, with the backing of Team Kawasaki Australia, entered the Australian Superbike Championship and finished an incredible 3rd!

It was in 1997 that the world would see Troy compete in 2 great World Championship events and recognise his talent and potential. Not only did he improve upon his 1996 placing by finishing 2nd in the Australian Superbike Championship aboard the Ansett Air Freight Suzuki but, entered as "wildcard", he amazed world class teams by finishing 5th in both races of the Phillip Island World Superbike round.If anyone needed further proof of his abilities, they surely had it when the Grand Prix event rolled into town at Phillip Island and, once again as a "wildcard" entry, Suzuki offered Troy a ride on their 250cc machine. Suzuki had struggled all year to have good results in this incredibly competitive class but Troy immediately qualified it 6th on the grid and even battled for the lead before finally finishing 6th in the race.
He thought that the GP's might be his next step but for a phone call from somebody watching that 250 GP race from the other side of the world. If Troy thought that he had made it in 1997, then he certainly hadn't bargained on the events of the next 3 years!

Darrell Healey was the Englishman who had been watching the 1997 Phillip Island 250 GP from the other side of the world.
As owner of the Team GSE, he phoned Troy directly after the GP and invited him to move to England to race the GSE Ducati in the British Superbike Championship.
At the beginning of 1998, Troy moved his family to England and finished 8th in what was probably the toughest National Championship in the world. The British Superbike Championship.
Having settled into the incredibly professional GSE team, Troy was ready for action.
He qualifying in 6 pole positions and 5 front row positions (excluding poles), he scored 6 wins and 14 podium finishes in all and won the British Championship by 28 points.
Troy was British Superbike Champion! Because he had won the series on a Ducati, his trophy was presented by none other than the World Champion, King Carl Fogarty... next stop the United States of America!

2000 was a typical example of how unpredictable racing can be. Troy had already moved from Australia to England and now, in February of 2000, he moved from England to the USA in order to ride a Ducati for the Vance & Hines team in the AMA Superbike Championship. He immediately impressed with his aggressive riding style and set pole position at his first race in the Daytona 200 Miler but crashed out during the race. He then moved on to round 2 at Sears Point and, once again, put the Ducati onto pole position but the race was cancelled because of adverse weather conditions. By this time, Troy was straining at the leash to show how fast he could be. He wouldn't have to wait long… Back in Phillip Island, Australia - the place where it had all started for Troy 3 years ago - World Champion Carl Fogarty had crashed during the second leg of the World Superbike event there. He was badly injured. Troy's phone rang again… he was approached by the Ducati factory in Italy to replace the injured "King Carl". As Troy said, "I get a call from Ducati asking if I was interested in the ride. I didn't need asking twice…!"
Troy crossed the Atlantic again to replace the injured Carl Fogarty and soon astounded the public with a series of spectacular performances. He would only have to wait a few races before he chalked up his first race win at World Championship level. The win at the incredibly fast Hockenheim circuit in Germany was followed by another win in front of a supportive British crowd around the very technical Brands Hatch circuit. Troy was proving himself convincingly.
Troy's first ever visit to Assen in Holland left fans in no doubt that he is one of the most spectacular riders in the world. Through awful weather conditions, his battle with the Japanese rider Noriyuki Haga had TV viewers gasping. On a track that was dry on one side of the circuit and wet on the other, the 2 riders swapped the lead corner after corner until Troy slid off of his Ducati and walked back to the pit garage. It was a walk that had become a common sight during 2000 but everyone around Troy realised that his ability to push the limits is the trademark of a future World Champion. Despite missing 6 races in the 2000 season he had finished 6th in the World Superbike Championship. Troy's rise to the top has been meteoric but now he faced his biggest step in motorcycle racing: The final step to becoming the Superbike World Champion.

Combining talent, determination and consistency is what is needed to win the World Superbike Championship. And that was exactly what Troy did. The 2001 season was a fresh start for Troy. From the very start, he put himself on the podium and continued to stay there race after race. And it wasn't long before he started putting himself at the very top of the podium. By the end of the season, Troy had logged an impressive 6 wins and 9 other podium finishes.
Despite his dominant riding, however, the title was not as easy as it looked for Troy. In the first race of the 11th round at Oschersleben, he experienced his only technical problem of the year and had to withdraw from the race. This allowed his nearest rival to climb back up in points and threaten Troy's championship hopes. This disturbing change of events might have pressurised other riders, but it didn't bother the Aussie. Instead, Troy put the incident behind him and proceeded to get back on the podium in the second race. This race day highlighted what is best about Troy: His ability to take each race as it comes. No other rider comes close to keeping the focus on the moment the way Troy does.
Troy helped Ducati back to the very top in 2001. He scored their 100th pole position, helped them win their 10th manufacturers title and won their 9th riders title.
As World Champion, 2002 won't be any different for Troy. It's another year made up of individual races. It's another year in which he will be determined to succeed.

The reigning World Champion started 2002 on an incredible note with six first-place finishes, putting him into the record books with the most consecutive wins at the start of any season. Even after his streak was brought to a halt at Sugo - probably the toughest track to win at for non-locals – Troy resumed his double-winning form at Monza and then again at Lausitzring and Misano. He tallied an incredible six double-wins, with 14 wins overall in the season.
Troy showed his characteristic grit when he crashed at Brands Hatch and damaged his back and ribs. In spite of the severe beating, he got back on his bike and rode through the pain to third and second place finishes. Not even the crash at Assen, which allowed his nearest rival to slip ahead in the standings by one point, would cause the Aussie's confidence to waver: "Now I've got to go out and do it all at Imola."
Imola will be remembered forever. Racing fans around the world saw one of the most spectacular races in history at this "winner takes all" event. Troy Bayliss and Colin Edwards fought two incredible battles, swapping the lead and sometimes their paint too! In the end there could only be one winner and on that day it was Edwards. Troy finished the championship second overall, but no one will forget the grace in which he conceded his title: There was still a big smile for all his fans as he stepped up to the podium after this final race of the season. Troy's tremendous efforts throughout the year had, however, helped Ducati win their 11th manufacturers title.
The 2003 season brings a big change for Troy: He and Ducati move into the MotoGP arena.


TROY BAYLISS' SITE
http://www.troybayliss.com/

NOME TROY BAYLISS
DATA DI NASCITA 30 MARZO 1969
LUOGO DI NASCITA TAREE, AUSTRALIA
LUOGO DI RESIDENZA MONACO
STATO CIVILE SPOSATO
FIGLI 2 MITCHELL E ABBEY
STATURA 1,74
PESO 68 KG
HOBBY CICLISMO
MOTO PREFERITA DUCATI MONSTER 900 S4
AUTO PREFERITA DODGE
PRIMA MOTO HONDA MONKEY 50 (NEL 1975)
PRIMA GARA MOTOCROSS A DIECI ANNI
DEBUTTO NEI GRAN PREMI 1997 A PHILLIP ISLAND
PRIMA VITTORIA IN SBK 2000 A HOCKENHEIM
VITTORIE COMPLESSIVE IN SBK 22