Returning MX2 World Championship racer Jay Wilson has confirmed he will finish out the 2017 Australian racing calendar as part of the Raceline Pirelli KTM squad alongside Jayden Rykers.

With former team member Wade Kirkland making an exit from both the team and professional racing just three rounds into the 2017 Motul MX Nationals season, the open spot on the factory-backed team was the perfect fit for the Queenslander who spent the 2012 season with the then Suzuki-backed outfit.

“I’m really excited that we can finally announce that I’ve signed with Raceline Pirelli KTM for the rest of the motocross and supercross,” said Wilson. “After returning home from Europe I knew that I wanted to continue racing so I was just waiting for the right opportunity to come up.

“The team is a perfect fit for me, I know the guys really well and I’ve actually raced for them before. I had a lot of success in my junior career with KTM so it’s exciting to have the opportunity to step on the KTM 250 SX-F and see what we can do.”

The 2015 MX Nationals MX2 champion looks forward to returning to racing action this weekend at Nowra’s sixth round of the Australian motocross series after making an early exit from the grand prix circuit where he raced as part of the JK Racing Yamaha team.

“I’m loving the bike, and we’re just really happy with how well things have come together,” he commented. “I’m looking forward to finally getting back to racing.”

After learning Wilson was searching for a ride domestically, Raceline Pirelli KTM team manager Chris Woods was excited to bring the former team member back into the fold to finish out the 2017 season.

“A number of years ago we worked with Jay when he was only just out of juniors and we enjoyed a lot of good times together,” said Woods. “When he returned home from overseas and we found out he was on the hunt for a ride we managed to put something together.

“Having Jay on board is a nice fit for the team, he has obviously had quite a bit of success in the MX2 class but he’s also a mature guy and works hard, which is what we’re all about.”

With five weeks testing and training completed aboard the 2017 KTM 250 SX-F, Woods looks forward to entering this weekend’s Nowra event in New South Wales with their new and highly-rated rider.

“We have spent the last five weeks working with Jay and getting him comfortable on the KTM and it’s been a very easy transition,” he added. “He’s adapted well to the new bike, so we’re all excited to get back to racing at Nowra this weekend.”

This weekend’s Nowra MX Nationals event will mark the Queenslander-based rider’s first Australian MX2 appearance since clinching the title at Coolum’s 2015 season finale.