Image: Andrew Conway (Conway MX).

Former Australian MX2 champion Jay Wilson has revealed he’s departed the JK Racing Yamaha team and won’t complete the remainder of the 2017 MX2 World Championship season.

Wilson is currently 37th in the point-standings following six rounds, with just a single point to his credit via a 20th-place finish scored during moto two in Indonesia.

The opportunity for Wilson to contest the world championship came late in the off-season while contesting the Arenacross UK series, entering Qatar’s opening round with minimal outdoor preparation in February.

“Sometimes things don’t go exactly to plan,” Wilson explained. “Unfortunately I have withdrawn from racing the MXGPs indefinitely and I will be returning home to Australia to be with my family. When I was offered the opportunity to race the GPs I jumped at it, even though I hadn’t raced motocross in eight months or had any pre-season training.

“Racing at that level is everything I have always dreamt of and spent my whole career working towards, so despite the timing not being right I was determined to make it work no matter what. The truth is, to race at that level everything needs to be perfect. The team you’re working with, testing, your machinery, your equipment, the circle of support you have around you, and unfortunately no matter how hard I worked, all of those things just weren’t there for me throughout the season so far and due to that I haven’t been able to reach my full potential.

“This is not a decision I have made lightly, this has taken a lot of thought and weighing up but I believe it’s better for me to be at home with my family and to work on finding something that is right than trying to force something to work that simply won’t. I’m still hungry and determined and know that with the right infrastructure I will be competitive once again.

“I’m extremely grateful for the JK Yamaha team for providing me with the opportunity to race the rounds that I have this year. I also can’t thank my mechanic Ade enough for being there during the good and the bad, you’re a lifelong friend mate. I’m looking forward to going back to the GPs in the future when the timing is right and when my family can be with me, but for now I’m excited to get home and see my girls, work on staying fit, healthy, and riding until the next chapter comes along.”

Wilson’s potential is unquestionable after winning both the Australian and New Zealand MX2 titles with JCR Yamaha in 2015. He then moved to the MX1 ranks last season with Crankt Protein Honda Racing, finishing sixth in the MX Nationals and seventh in AUS Supercross.