PTR Triumph rider Oli Bayliss delivered a dream performance at his home round of the 2026 FIM Supersport World Championship, securing a sensational third-place finish in Saturday’s season opener at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit.

In front of an electrified Australian crowd, Bayliss claimed his first ever World Supersport podium, marking a milestone moment in his career and becoming Australia’s youngest-ever WorldSSP podium finisher in the process.

After achieving his career-best qualifying result of P2 on the grid, Bayliss lined up on the front row full of confidence. However, the 18-lap race did not begin as planned, with the Australian unable to maximise his starting position and dropping to sixth in the opening exchanges.

Undeterred, Bayliss dug deep. Displaying grit and maturity beyond his years, he fought his way back into contention, joining a five-rider battle for the podium. As the race intensified, a mistake from Valentin Debise allowed Bayliss to seize control of the chasing group and move into a podium position.

Drama struck on lap 13 when Bayliss ran wide at Turn 6, dipping onto the grass in a heart-stopping moment that threatened to end his charge. Showing remarkable composure, he gathered himself and rejoined the fight, trading positions relentlessly over the final eight laps in a thrilling contest.

When the chequered flag fell, it was Bayliss who emerged in third place securing an unforgettable podium at his home circuit and etching his name into the record books.

Oli Bayliss: “It was a pretty good day here at Philip Island. We got our first podium, finally after four years. We have been strong all throughout the test, all through yesterday. It came to the race I didn’t have the best first couple of laps, got pushed back a little bit fighting with riders where, I think if I maybe wasn’t in that position I could have stayed with, maybe not Masia, but some of the other guys in front. So we will try and work on our first laps tomorrow and try and get a little bit better of a feeling and see how we go.”

Heartbreak for Tom Booth-Amos After Strong Start

On the other side of the garage, teammate Tom Booth-Amos showed impressive early pace after launching from P5 on the second row of the grid. Booth-Amos made a blistering start and quickly moved into second position, looking like a strong contender for the podium.

Unfortunately his race came to a premature end on lap three. While battling with Phillip Oettl at Turn 4, the bike slid out from underneath him and he crashed out of the race. Booth-Amos was uninjured in the incident and is fit to line up for Sunday’s Race 2, where he will be aiming to convert his evident pace into a strong result.

Tom Booth-Amos: “Unfortunately I had a crash but I was feeling pretty good on the bike up to that point. We’ll regroup, learn from it and come back stronger tomorrow.”

PTR Triumph Factory Racing Team Manager Simon Buckmaster: “It’s sort of a mixed situation. An incredible job by Oli and all the guys to get his first podium and also at his home round, it’s a fantastic thing for him and the team! On the other side for Tom, he got up to second and then crashed out on lap 3, just a bit too much gas coming out of turn 2 and slid off. He’s ok, we’ve discussed it. Unfortunately these things happen. He is third on the grid for tomorrow, as he had already done the third fastest lap of the race before he crashed. Oli starts sixth so we look forward to tomorrow. A great job by the team, lot of work to do on Tom’s side but everyone has done a great job. Let’s see if we can get both riders on the podium and challenge for the win tomorrow.”

Rain shakes up Phillip Island as Oli storms to fastest lap

After the champagne celebrations of race one, race two at the iconic Philip Island Circuit delivered a dramatic change of tone as the first rain of the weekend swept across the circuit ahead of the second 18-lap World Supersport race.

With rain coming down and tension rising on the grid, tyre choice became the defining gamble. The race was declared wet as the lights went out, and the PTR Triumph pairing of Tom Booth-Amos and Oli Bayliss committed to full wet-weather tyres, a decision that initially looked spot on.

But as so often at Phillip Island, the ever-changing weather had other ideas and as the laps ticked by, the racing line dried rapidly forcing both riders into the pits for slicks. The switch reignited their charge, and suddenly the lap times told a different story. Bayliss lit up the timing screens ultimately claiming the Pirelli Fastest Lap Award.

Despite being the fastest man on track in the closing stages, the earlier tyre gamble proved costly. Home hero Bayliss fought back valiantly to salvage P12 at the flag, a result that didn’t reflect his pace.

Oli Bayliss: “It’s definitely not the way we wanted to end the weekend, it was really difficult conditions. Unfortunately we didn’t make the right decision for the tyres, we went out on wets and the leading group started on dry.  I think after eight laps we pitted for a dry tyre and we had the pace to win the race but we were too late. We got the fastest lap but I feel like there was a lot more on the table to get. We have a really good feeling with the bike so we will have to see how we go in Portimao.”

For Booth-Amos, it was a bruising end to a challenging weekend. Two heavy crashes disrupted his rhythm, and he never quite found the connection he needed to push forward. Digging deep, he battled to the line to secure P15 and a solitary championship point. Small consolation after a tough couple of days.

Tom Booth-Amos: “Obviously not the weekend that we hoped for. I’ve been strong all week in the test and the race weekend. It’s one of those so we just move on to Portugal.”

PTR Triumph Factory Racing Team Manager Simon Buckmaster: “Today didn’t work out how we wanted, it was such a lottery. We decided to go on wets, most people did and then it didn’t rain until the end of the race. We pitted for dry tyres and then Tom just didn’t have the feeling but he kept with it and he got a point. Oli came back through the field and in the end, the first three from yesterday’s race finished in line on the track and Oli got the fastest lap. So from Tom’s side we had the speed but unfortunately two crashes dented our momentum. Oli made a big step with the podium yesterday and the fastest lap today so we look forward to him carrying on the momentum to Portimao and all through the European season.”