Nicky Hayden

Starting from humble dirt track beginnings at the age of four, Nicky Hayden has captured many titles in premier motorcycle racing, including MotoGP.

Don't think for a minute that this good-natured, always smiling kid from Kentucky doesn't have the heart of a winner. Both of Nicky's parents were involved in dirt track racing before he was born. Earl, Nicky's father, built dirt tracks for his five children to learn how to race bikes while living in the countryside of Kentucky. With Nicky's two brothers racing in the AMA Superbike Championship and his own success in AMA and MotoGP, his father's dream has been made a reality.

Hayden began his career with dirt track racing, beginning at four-years-old at the Paducah International Raceway. From that moment on, he competed regularly in the category and spent nearly every weekend traveling to tracks all over the American Midwest with his family.
 
Although over time his passion transferred itself more towards road racing, Nicky and his brothers have always remained interested in dirt track, a world in which they all obtained great results. A highlight was the historic Springfield TT in 2002 where, having all qualified on the front row, all three brothers stepped up to the podium. Nicky, Tommy and Roger Lee finished the race in that order - something that had never happened before in a professional AMA Flat Track race. At that time Nicky was already one of the most talented riders in the AMA Superbike Championship and was in contention for the title, a title that he won just a few months later.

After three seasons in MotoGP, Nicky picked up his first career win at the USGP at Laguna Seca. In front of his American fans Nicky dominated, leading every lap and winning the hearts of many GP fans across the globe. For 2006, the Kentucky Kid did one better by claiming the checkers at Laguna again while netting the MotoGP title for Honda. To earn the championship, Hayden exhibited consistency and determination, overcoming a devastating DNF at Estoril courtesy of his Repsol Honda teammate, Dani Pedrosa.

In 2007 the GP category moved from 990cc to 800cc machines and Hayden was not immediately comfortable with the new 800cc V-Four RC212V at his command. He also had a two-year contract with the factory Honda team, but Nick the Quick was under the gun to win another title and couldn't deliver. The work completed during the year allowed him to reach the podium in Germany, Holland and the Czech Republic, but he was only able to finish the season eighth overall.

2008 was another year of mixed fortunes for Hayden, especially at the start of the season when, despite several top-five finishes, he failed to reach the podium. An injury to his foot, caused when he participated in a Supermoto race at the X-Games in Los Angeles, complicated things and forced him to miss the Czech Republic and San Marino GP races. However, always ready to fight harder, the American was back in form at his home round of Indianapolis, where in difficult conditions and less than perfect health, he finished second behind Valentino Rossi. Another podium at Phillip Island and a series of strong results toward the end of the season allowed him to climb the leader board to finish the year in sixth place.

In 2009 Hayden made the jump from Honda to Ducati where he campaigned aboard the Desmosedici GP9 alongside teammate and 2007 champion, Casey Stoner. In 17 starts Hayden only made it to the podium once in '09, and finished 13th overall.

The next year Hayden continued to struggle aboard his Ducati machine. Like the previous year, The Kentucky Kid only managed one podium finish during a mediocre season. Despite his lackluster results, Hayden finished seventh overall after posting respectable top-10 finishes throughout the year.

For 2011 Hayden will be continuing his MotoGP campaign with the Ducati squad, and will be joined by heavyweight, Valentino Rossi.