Aussies could tie up superbike and supersport titles this weekend

After unexpectedly being forced to defer victory celebrations in Germany last month, 37-year-old Bayliss (Ducati 999F06) is poised to finally wrap up the title in Italy, irrespective of how main championship rivals James Toseland (Honda CBR1000RR) and Japan's Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha YZF-R1) fare.

"I am like a dog on a chain and I have to keep it on until the job is done," Bayliss was quoted as saying on his personal website. "But if we can sort it out by the first race the chain comes off for the second and I can run rampant.

"I remember Imola from 2001 and 2002. It's a great track in the middle of town, a place where you can hear and feel the atmosphere -- and it seems to make for close racing.

"This will certainly be a hectic weekend, as Imola is only 30km away from the Ducati factory, so as far as the hospitality for sponsors and guests go it will be tough."

A podium finish for Bayliss in race one will be enough to finish the job, although there are still a number of other possible scenarios which would get him over the line -- including a strong result in race two.

With a maximum of 100pts on the table in the final two rounds, Bayliss is currently on 357, miles ahead of Haga (270), Toseland (264), Troy Corser (Suzuki GSX-R1000, 211) and Yamaha's Andrew Pitt (YZF-R1, 210).

If Bayliss, as expected, completes formalities on Sunday, he could well be joined in celebration by compatriot Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany YZF-R6), who holds a 27pt lead over reigning world champion Sebastien Charpentier (Honda CBRR600RR) in the Supersport battle.

Curtain, a four-time Australian road racing champion, has been a picture of consistency all year, and returns to a circuit where he finished second in 2005 - albeit in atrociously wet conditions.

Curtain, 40, will become the fourth Aussie World Supersport champion since 1999 if one of the following occurs: he completes the race ahead of Charpentier; finishes with no more than 1pt less than Charpentier; or finishes outside the points and Charpentier is 15th.

"I never expected to go to Imola with such a big lead," said Curtain. "I had hoped that maybe I could have something like a 10pt advantage after Lausitz (Germany) so to be in this position is something we couldn't dream of," said Curtain.