Ryde ready for pucetti debut Down Under

Ryde, 19, arrived at the Philip Island Circuit late last week to fully prepare for the opening race, which will see him compete for the first time for his new team and eventually alongside five-time world champion Kenan Sofuoglu, who won the 2016 honours in style, although the Turk will not compete in Australia due to having surgery on his hand.

Ryde had initially been left without a team following the decision by his previous team, Schmidt Racing, not to compete in this year’s championship - the second time in 2016 that the teenager had found himself in the wilderness following Ranieri Med’s withdrawal earlier in the year.

But he can now look forward to a season with one of the leading teams in the 2017 championship.

Following testing this week, he said: “I’m getting more used to the bike every time I ride but there is still more work to do as I know I can go faster.

“I’m now looking forward to the weekend and hopefully will improve the setup to get further up the sharp end.”

Ryde has attracted plenty of attention across the racing world since winning the British Superstock title in 2014.

When competing as a wildcard in the World SSP at Donington Park in 2015 he secured a podium finish, which helped him secure a ride with Ranieri Med in 2016 before their unexpected withdrawal.

He subsequently saw the year out with Schmidt Racing, including gaining what could be crucial experience of the Kawasaki machines, before they too opted to move away from the World SSP arena.

With practice and qualifying sessions taking place over Friday and Saturday, Sunday’s race will take place at 2.30am UK time, ahead of the second race in the World Superbike Championship, and be broadcast live on Eurosport.

Meanwhile, Ryde received a boost before travelling to Australia with the news of a new sponsor, as Beechfield Acoustics join LANGVER as his sponsors for 2017.

A spokesman for the Ryde camp said: “This deal will see the Beechfield Acoustics logo occupy the bottom visor spot on Kyle’s helmet and also see their brand represented on the new Kawasaki for the whole of the 2017 campaign.

“We are delighted to have secured this deal and while it helps Kyle with the costs of competing we also think it represents a great opportunity for Beechfield as they look to further spread awareness of their company at home and abroad.”