With 115 Superbike race starts in total in ASBK aboard a Yamaha YZF-R1 – 87 with the factory Yamaha Racing Team, 17 as a privateer, and 11 this year with the Stop & Seal Team – Halliday has officially made the switch.
Halliday will soon race a McMartin Racing-prepared Ducati Panigale V4 R for the remainder of the 2025 season.
Halliday got his first taste of the Panigale V4 R last Sunday at the second round of the NSW Road Race Championship at Sydney Motorsport Park, hosted by the St George Motorcycle Club, and will continue familiarising himself with the machine at One Raceway this week.
The only time Halliday has previously raced a Ducati was at the 2016 Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix in the Superbike support races with the DesmoSport Ducati team aboard a 1299 Panigale, where he recorded a 6-6-7 result.
Halliday has long been one of the most consistent performers in the Australian Superbike Championship, racking up 37 top-three finishes from 115 race starts, including four race wins and 16 overall round podiums.
The 2025 season, however, has proven more challenging. From 11 race starts he has recorded seven top 10 finishes, highlighted by a third-place result in race two at Sydney Motorsport Park back in March, which also earned him third overall for the round.
Last time out at Queensland Raceway – which ran in conjunction with Supercars as part of the Ipswich Super440 – offered little reward, with bike issues derailing both races and leaving Halliday with a DNF and 18th place finish which saw him 19th for the overall round.
That represented his second-worst finish in his Superbike career.
Post-race, his frustration was clear: changes are needed if he is to rejoin the front-runners.
“I felt like the move to a Ducati V4 R would have been the best move for both myself and the team, if we wanted to run at the pointy end of the field again,” Halliday told Speedcafe.
“From what I have experienced with the bike so far, the thing is amazing and I can not wait to see what it will be like once we hit the Island in a few weeks’ time from now.
“Everything I wanted the bike to, it just did it. It’s an amazing bit of machinery,” added Halliday, whose fastest time on Sunday was a 1:29.971s in race five.
The move to the Ducati Panigale V4R marks a significant change for the 37-year-old. After spending virtually his entire premier-class career aboard Yamaha machinery, the Italian superbike presents both fresh opportunities and fresh challenges.
With the backend of the 2025 season looming, starting with round six at Phillip Island on the first weekend of September, all eyes will be on Halliday to see how quickly he gels with his new machine.
“I have to thank both Robbie Bolger and Claire Sharky for making this all possible. They have both invested a lot of money into this project and I just really hope I can deliver them and the team the results they all deserve,” said Halliday.
Heading into round six, Halliday sits in 11th place in the championship, 17 points off John Lytras.
In terms of the Stop and Seal race team, it is understood that Beau Beaton will return aboard the Yamaha R1 at Phillip Island, while it remains unclear whether Arthur Sissis will contest the remainder of the season.
Tom Toparis will continue on the Ducati Panigale V2 in the Next Gen Supersport Championship, while Jack Mahaffy and Archie McDonald — who currently sit first and second in the standings on Yamaha YZF-R6s fitted with Michelin tyres — will carry on their campaigns in the Australian Supersport Championship.
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