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It's 2021, which is 20 years since number 21 Troy Bayliss, riding a Ducati 996R, won the first of his three Superbike World Championships. Ducati is honoring that history with a new Bayliss 1st Championship 20th Anniversary edition Panigale V2.
The motorcycle is gorgeous, but it's more than just a pretty paint job and a few upgraded components that make the Bayliss V2 a special bike. For a lot of buyers, the appeal will also have to do with the ties to a likeable and popular champion.
In a time when kids are considered behind schedule on their future MotoGP careers, in some parts of the world, if they're not riding a motorcycle by age six, you have to admire a guy who became a multi-time world champion even though he began his professional road racing career at age 23. And maybe, if you're like me, you miss a time when that was possible.
Depending on our time frames, we all have fond memories of racing past from different eras. Bayliss played a role in a few of my fondest memories of racing. Following that first title in 2001, he and Colin Edwards fought one of the most memorable championship battles I've ever seen in 2002, though Bayliss came second in that one. The final race of the 2006 MotoGP season is memorable for many reasons, most of them proving how unpredictable racing can be. Everyone was sure Valentino Rossi had the championship wrapped up. Nobody expected Bayliss, riding as a wildcard entry who had not won a single race in three full MotoGP seasons from 2003 through 2005, would win. But Nicky Hayden did snatch the title away from Rossi and Bayliss did win to became the only racer ever to win MotoGP and World Superbike races in the same season.
Bayliss won two more WSBK titles for Ducati in 2006 and 2008 and then hung up his leathers. Today, he supports the racing career of his son, Oli.
The Ducati Museum in Italy is also planning an exhibition, titled "Troy Story: The Legend of a Champion," that displays bikes from Bayliss' racing career. The temporary exhibition will be on display through September 19.
Ducati Panigale V2 Bayliss 1st Championship 20th Anniversary edition
The Bayliss edition of the Panigale V2 differs from the regular model in its Öhlins NX30 front fork and TTX36 rear shock, its adjustable steering damper, self-bleeding front brake and clutch master cylinders and a host of appearance items. The cosmetic changes include the livery, obviously, a single seat with the number 21 stitched in, as well as a machined steering head engraved with the name of the bike and its number.
Performance will be about the same as the Panigale V2 Zack tested at Jerez almost two years ago, so read his thorough test-ride report for the details on the 155-horsepower twin engine and the extensive electronic aids. The Bayliss version weighs about 6.6 pounds (two kilograms) less, mainly due to the solo seat and lithium ion battery.
The U.S. price for the Bayliss edition is $21,000, which is $4,505 more than the regular V2, and it will be available at Ducati dealers in October. (Canada price is $23,695 and in Mexico it's 484,000 pesos.) No guarantee that it will allow you to develop the kind of talent to win your first world championship at 31 and your third at 39, but at least you'll look good while training.
