Apparently, the word “retirement” doesn’t mean a whole lot to Troy Bayliss->ke1495. That, or he has without question the loosest definition of the word out of anybody I know. Either way, Bayliss is going back to the saddle in pursuit of checkered flags after confirming his intentions to race for Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Ducati->ke622 at the 2015 AMA Pro Grand National Series.

The 46-year old former World Superbike->ke2195 champion may be far from his prime, but he’s still pretty good racing motorbikes, which is probably why it wasn’t that hard for him to resist the invitation to give it one more go at racing competition.

But instead of racing on road surfaces, Bayliss will join new teammate Johnny Lewis in five mile-long racing events of the series, beginning with the Springfield Mile in Illinois on May 24. It might be a little jarring seeing Bayliss competing outside of the World Superbike Championship, but a lot of people don’t know that dirt and flat track racing is where he cut his teeth as a neophyte, using the experience he gained from his run on dirt tracks to fuel his racing career.

So think about it as Bayliss’ career coming full circle, possibly ending where it all started. Nobody really knows what’s in store for Bayliss once he starts racing again, but a lot of his fans will be hoping to see vintage Troy Bayliss in what could possibly be his last go-round on a motorcycle racing bike.

Then again, this is Troy Bayliss we’re talking about. It might be the AMA Pro Grand National Series today, but at this point, I’m not discounting any thought of him retiring for good. Some people are just born to race.

Continue reading to read more about Troy Bayliss' plans to race in the AMA Pro Grand National Series.

Why it matters

I'm not trying to make fun of Troy Bayliss' constant dance with retirement and his continuing desire to race competitively at the age of 46.

On the contrary, I'm a huge admirer of his and I'm going to be rooting for him to succeed in his latest go-round on a racing bike.

But I'm also a little worried about him racing at such an advanced age for a motorcycle rider. I don't know if he actually thinks that he's got a chance to compete for the title here or he's just doing it because he has nothing else to do.

Hopefully, Bayliss performs well enough that all our concerns and worries surrounding his abilities to continue racing at a high level are abated.

That said, here are the races Troy Bayliss is scheduled to compete in at the 2015 AMA Pro Grand National Series.

After his "debut" at Springfield Mile, the former WSBK world champion will also race for Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Ducati in the Sacramento Mile (May 30), Du Quoin Mile (July 4), Indy Mile (July 11), and a second race at the Springfield Mile (September 6).

If you're a fan of Troy Bayliss, you might want to keep your calendars handy for all of these dates. I for one will be keeping a close eye on how he does in all five races.

Who knows, if he performs as well as his reputation, we might even see him race a full schedule next season. Whether or not that's a good thing is a discussion for another time.