"I definitely want to do more laps and try and get out there in either the Development Series or the endurance races"
ONE OF the world's greatest ever motorcycle racers, Troy Bayliss, took the first major step in his new four-wheel racing career with a test drive of Craig Lowndes' 2009 TeamVodafone V8 Supercar at Queensland Raceway in Australia.
The former multi-World Champion put in over 80 laps of the circuit, impressing team engineers with his precise control and split-second regularity in the 600hp plus V8 Ford Falcon machine.
After a sighting lap with championship regular Lowndes in the passenger seat, Troy eventually got down to within half a second of the mark set by his fellow Australian.
Bayliss said the experience had been immensely rewarding and said that the world-class touring car category was a logical progression for his career.
He said: "That was a dream come true. I have been a huge fan of V8 Supercars for a long time and to finally get some laps in one felt amazing. A lot of the on-track principals transfer between the bike and the car and once the excitement of the first few laps wore off I felt like I was back at the office trying to perfect my corners and reduce my lap times. I can honestly say I have the bug, I definitely want to do more laps and try and get out there in either the Development Series or the endurance races."
