Nicky Hayden

Nicky Hayden

Nation:	United States
Motorcycle world championship
statistics
Starts Victories Poles SR 218 3 5 7th
World title:	1
World Cup points:	1698
Podiums:	28
According to class (es): MotoGP class First start: 2003 Japanese Grand Prix Last start: 2016 Australian Grand Prix Constructors 2003-2008, 2014-2016  Honda  • 2009-2013  Ducati World Cup balance World Champion ( 2006 ) Starts Victories Poles SR 218 3 5 7th World Cup points: 1698 Podiums: 28
Superbike World Championship First start:  Laguna Seca (Run 1) 2002 statistics Constructors 2002, 2016-2017  Honda World Cup balance World Cup fifth ( 2016 ) Starts Victories Poles SR 38 1 - - World Cup points: 304 Podiums: 4th

Hayden 2006 on Honda

Hayden 2007 on Honda

Hayden 2009 on Ducati

Hayden 2013 on Ducati

Nicholas Patrick "Nicky" Hayden (born July 30, 1981 in Owensboro , Kentucky , † May 22, 2017 in Cesena , Italy ) was an American motorcycle racer and world champion in the MotoGP class.

Career

Beginnings

In his youth, Nicky Hayden drove against twice his age competitors in the Central Motorcycle Roadracing Association (CMRA). He started from the end of the starting field with the help of a family or team member who held his motorcycle upright because he was too small to reach the ground with his feet due to his young age.

In 2002 he won the US Superbike Championship and the Daytona 200 on a Honda .

MotoGP class

In his first MotoGP year 2003 , Hayden was voted fifth overall and Rookie of the Year alongside reigning World Champion Valentino Rossi . After initial adjustment problems, he was able to improve steadily and achieved his first podium positions in the first season.

In the 2004 season , Hayden was eighth overall. After Rossi's departure, he got a new teammate in the Repsol Honda team in the form of the Brazilian Alex Barros . After good results in the winter tests, he went into his second season with high ambitions. However, the season developed differently than hoped. His performance was too inconsistent.

In 2005 Nicky Hayden was third in the MotoGP World Championship. Also for his third season he got a new teammate in Max Biaggi . After the moderate 2004 season, he was under a lot of pressure despite receiving a new two-year deal from Honda. After a reasonable performance in the winter tests, the season started rather moderately, although it became steadily more constant. He finally achieved his first MotoGP victory on July 10, 2005 at his home Grand Prix at the Laguna Seca Raceway . This was followed by his first pole position and further podium positions, which finally secured him third place in the overall standings. He clearly beat his team-mate Max Biaggi, who started as a favorite in the World Cup.

For the 2006 season Nicky Hayden got a new teammate, the reigning 250cc world champion Dani Pedrosa , who was considered the greatest Spanish talent. Hayden was always at the forefront from the start, took podium places in a row and won two races that season with the Dutch TT at Assen and Laguna Seca. Things didn't go so well in the second half of the season and he gradually lost his lead over Valentino Rossi. The low point was the penultimate race of the season, the Portuguese Grand Prix in Estoril , when Hayden was shot down by team-mate Pedrosa and lost the championship lead to Rossi. At the last race, the Valencia Grand Prix , Nicky Hayden finally won his first World Championship title in the MotoGP class with 252 points after Rossi fell in third place.

In the 2007 season , the MotoGP class was completely turned inside out with the introduction of the 800 cc engines. It was a difficult season for Hayden with few podiums and no wins. Among other things, this was due to the fact that his Honda RC212V was inferior to the Ducati Desmosedici GP7 and also at times to the Yamaha YZR-M1 . In addition, the Honda was clearly tailored to the much smaller and lighter team-mate Pedrosa, which didn't make things any easier for Hayden. Ultimately, he finished the season in eighth place after only three podium places.

The 2008 season didn't get any easier for Hayden either, as the 2008 Honda was again built for the much smaller Pedrosa. After only two podium places and a short injury-related break, he finished sixth in the World Cup. It was clear early on that Hayden would no longer be eclipsed by Pedrosa and he finally signed a contract with Ducati for the 2009 season alongside the 2007 world champion, Casey Stoner from Australia .

Hayden had problems with the difficult-to-control Ducati from the start in 2009, which until then only Stoner could cope with. He too had a hard time at first and only got his first podium for Ducati at his home Grand Prix in Indianapolis . In the last third of the season he was able to score consistently, which ultimately only meant 13th place, his worst final placement ever.

In the run-up to the 2010 season , Hayden showed significantly better ideas in the winter tests than in the previous year. He started the season with three fourth places in the first four races. In the further course of the season he was able to consistently place himself in the top seven, although only a podium place came out on, but at least the seventh place in the World Championship came out at the end of the year.

For the 2011 season he got a new “old” team-mate at Ducati in Valentino Rossi. The winter tests were very mixed, which was also confirmed in the first race. In the second race, Hayden was able to take the first and only podium in 2011. He finished the season in eighth place overall.

In the 2012 season he started again at the side of Valentino Rossi. Without a podium, he finished the season in ninth place.

He also started for the Ducati factory team in the 2013 season . Andrea Dovizioso replaced Valentino Rossi as his new teammate. He finished the season again without a podium in 9th place in the overall standings.

In the 2014 season Nicky Hayden started after five years with Ducati in the Aspar Racing Team . There he drove a Honda RCV1000R in the newly founded open format. His teammate was Hiroshi Aoyama .

Hayden celebrated his 200th race in the World Cup at the Texas Grand Prix in the 2015 season . As part of the Grand Prix of Valencia , the last race of the season, Hayden was in the MotoGP Hall of Fame added.

Nicky Hayden made further appearances in the motorcycle world championship in 2016 at the Grand Prix of Aragon and the Grand Prix of Australia . He replaced the injured Australian Jack Miller in the Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS team and Dani Pedrosa in the Honda works team. Both times on a Honda RC213V .

Superbike World Championship

Nicky Hayden 2017

After Hayden had already contested the two races in the USA in Laguna Seca in the 2002 season , he definitely switched to the FIM - Superbike World Championship for the 2016 season . In his first full season, which he finished fifth overall, Hayden drove a Honda CBR 1000 SP for the Honda factory team. His teammate was the Dutch Supersport World Champion of 2014 , Michael van der Mark . At the second round in Sepang , Malaysia , Nicky Hayden was able to achieve his first victory in this racing series.

For the 2017 season , Stefan Bradl became his new teammate.

Fatal bicycle accident

On May 17, 2017, Nicky Hayden was involved in an accident with a car while training on a bicycle in Rimini . He suffered a traumatic brain injury and various broken bones . First, he was transported to a local hospital. On the same day he was transferred to the Ospedale Maurizio Bufalini in Cesena . He died there on May 22, 2017.

Racing history

MotoGP

• Teams: Repsol - Honda , Honda Racing Corporation (HRC), Ducati Marlboro Team, Aspar Racing Team
• Motorcycles: Honda RC211V, Honda RC212V, Ducati Desmosedici GP9, GP10, GP11, GP12 & GP13, Honda RCV1000R, Honda RC213V-RS
• First MotoGP race: April 6, 2003, Suzuka , 7th place
• Last MotoGP race: October 23, 2016, Phillip Island , 17th place
• First MotoGP win: July 10, 2005, Laguna Seca
• First MotoGP podium : October 5, 2003, Motegi , 3rd place
• Highest World Championship placement: World Champion ( 2006 )
• Induction into the MotoGP Hall of Fame

AMA superbike

• Teams: American Honda, Honda Racing Corporation (HRC)
• Motorcycles: Honda RC51 , Honda VFR750 (RC45)
• First Superbike race: April 18, 1999, Willow Springs International Raceway, 12th place
• First Superbike win: June 11, 2000, Road America
• First Superbike podium: September 19, 1999, Pikes Peak , 3rd place
• Number of superbike wins: 17
• Number of Superbike podiums: 13 (no wins)
• Highest AMA Superbike Placement: First (2002)

AMA Supersport

• Teams: American Honda, Erion Honda, HyperCycle Suzuki
• Motorcycles: Honda CBR 600 F3 , Suzuki GSX-R600
• First Supersport Victory: April 26, 1998, Willow Springs International Raceway
• Number of Supersport victories: 6
• Highest AMA Supersport ranking: 1st (1999)

AMA Superstock

• Team: HyperCycle Suzuki
• Motorcycles: Suzuki GSX-R 750
• First Supersport victory: April 19, 1998, Laguna Seca
• Number of Supersport victories: 5
• Highest AMA Superstock ranking: Fourth (1998)

AMA Formula Extreme

• Team: Erion Honda
• Motorcycle: Honda CBR 900 RR
• First Formula Extreme victory: April 17, 1998, Willow Springs International Raceway
• Number of Formula Extreme victories: 7
• Highest AMA Formula Extreme placement: Second (1999)

Trivia

• Hayden was 1.73 m tall and was nicknamed the "Kentucky Kid" and "Trick Daddy".
• His two brothers Tommy and Roger Lee are professional racing drivers in the AMA ; he also had two sisters named Jenny and Kathleen.
• Hayden named Bubba Shobert , Will Davis and Lance Armstrong as his greatest idols.
• His father already used his starting number 69 , who joked that he dialed the number because it can be read upside down, even when the motorcycle rolls over.
• Hayden was engaged to Jackie Marin since May 17, 2016 .

statistics

In the motorcycle world championship

season	class	motorcycle	run	Victories	Podiums	Poles	Points	Result
2003	MotoGP	Honda	16	-	2	-	130	5.
2004	MotoGP	Honda	15th	-	2	-	117	8th.
2005	MotoGP	Honda	17th	1	6th	3	206	3.
2006	MotoGP	Honda	17th	2	10	1	252	World Champion
2007	MotoGP	Honda	18th	-	3	1	127	8th.
2008	MotoGP	Honda	16	-	2	-	155	6th
2009	MotoGP	Ducati	17th	-	1	-	104	13.
2010	MotoGP	Ducati	18th	-	1	-	163	7th
2011	MotoGP	Ducati	17th	-	1	-	132	8th.
2012	MotoGP	Ducati	16	-	-	-	122	9.
2013	MotoGP	Ducati	18th	-	-	-	126	9.
2014	MotoGP	Honda	13	-	-	-	47	16.
2015	MotoGP	Honda	18th	-	-	-	16	20th
2016	MotoGP	Honda	2	-	-	-	1	26th
total			218	3	28	5	1698	1 world title

In the Superbike World Championship

(Status: July 9, 2017; Laguna Seca (run 2))

season	team	motorcycle	run	Victories	Podiums	Poles	Points	Result
2002	American Honda	Honda VTR 1000	2	-	-	-	16	26th
2016	Honda World Superbike Team	Honda CBR 1000RR SP	26th	1	4th	-	248	5.
2017	Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team	Honda CBR 1000RR SP	10	-	-	-	40	(16.)
total			38	1	4th	-	304

Web links

Commons : Nicky Hayden  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Official website
• Nicky Hayden on the motorcycle world championship official website.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Gerald Dirnbeck: Ex-MotoGP world champion Nicky Hayden has passed away. Motorsport-Total.com, May 22, 2017, accessed May 22, 2017 . 
2. ↑ Nicky Hayden - A Life for Racing. motogp.com, accessed April 14, 2015 . 
3. ↑ Sharleena Wirsing: Dorna boss Ezpeleta: "Hayden becomes an SBK legend". speedweek.com, November 8, 2015, accessed November 8, 2015 . 
4. ↑ Hayden replaces Miller in AragonGP. motogp.com, September 19, 2016, accessed September 19, 2016 . 
5. ↑ Sebastian Fränzschky: Nicky Hayden: Comeback on the factory Honda! motorsport-total.com, October 18, 2016, accessed on October 23, 2016 . 
6. ↑ Hayden On A Honda In WSBK? (No longer available online.) Superbikeplanet.com, archived from the original on October 7, 2015 ; accessed on October 18, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
7. ↑ Hayden switches to the Superbike World Championship in 2016. worldsbk.com, accessed October 9, 2015 . 
8. ↑ Hayden celebrates rain victory in Sepang. In: worldsbk.com. Retrieved May 16, 2015 . 
9. ^ Günther Wiesinger: Nicky Hayden: After a racing bike accident in mortal danger. In: speedweek.com. Retrieved May 18, 2017 . 
10. ^ Nicky Hayden: marriage proposal in Venice. Speedweek, May 20, 2016, accessed May 20, 2016 .