[MT Wallet]

I was just reading about him in SportRider magazine, and how he was having a slump in '07 after winning back to back victories in '05 and '06.


He was with Honda at the time.


In the article he says tires was the problem in some races and the Honda bike-- in others. He really wanted Honda to come out with a pneumatic valve engine for more top end power.

In the end....he left Honda or his contract wasn't renewed.


What do you guys think of Hayden? Was it a fluke or is he truly a gifted rider?

 

[binx_19]

what?

 

[benroe]

Nicky is a kick ass rider. He won in AMA superbike over here, and in motogp. All he needs is a WSBK title and he has the trifecta!! Plus he is quite the dirt track rider to boot. I think his time left in motogp is short, but wherever he goes there is going to be title contention in his future.

 

[scatterbrained]

Nicky Hayden got screwed over by Repsol Honda. Even while he was on his way to win the world title Honda was re-engineering their bike to fit the lilliputian Pedrobot. Repsol was itching to see a Spanish GP champ and saw Pedrobot as the one to do it. Therefore Pedorosa became the #1 rider and Hayden was pushed out. Hayden has a lot of talent, maybe not on the level of the aliens but he's quite good. He's been making progress with the Ducati, more so than any of the other recent riders on that bike (except Stoner). The new testing restrictions have made it hard to develop a bike, if the bike isn't good from the start it could be a long time before any meaningful progress can be made. Luvio Suppo (ducati team boss) believes in making a bike his way and if you can't make it work too bad, that's why Rossi passed over Ducati to move to Yamaha. Vermulen is making the move to WSB rather than ride a Ducati. Yet Hayden is slowly moving up the order. Add to all of this rumors that Ducati is replacing Suppo and I think Hayden should have a much better season next year.

 

[ThePhorest]

Luvio Suppo (ducati team boss) believes in making a bike his way and if you can't make it work too bad, that's why Rossi passed over Ducati to move to Yamaha.

Good thing Livio is out for next season.

Nicky has had the most impressive showing of any partner to Casey Stoner on a Ducati in the 800cc era. He and Vito Guareschi have a handle on the bike this season, and look for him to come out swinging next season with no lead-in time to get used to the bike. Vito will be the team boss next season, which may help as well.

Nick has also had a lot of bad luck this season.He's had several races in which he's been bucked off because of other riders' stupidity. In the last race in Malaysia, he had a stiker ont he side of this bike that said "STAY BACK!!! Don't touch me!" :lao

The bike has even blown up and thrown him through the screen, cutting his chest (very first race, Qatar). So he's been through some tough times in 2009. 2010 will hopefully feature less drama and more pushing towards the top 5, as Nick has done several times this season, including the previous race.

Spies will be on the Yam in 2010, so Nick will want to prove that he's the top American. Look out for some serious U.S. fireworks next season between Hayden Spies and Edwards!

 

[MVrider]

Anybody fast enough to ride a MOTOGP bike is an outstanding rider but Hayden has a slim chance of ever winning another MOTOGP championship. If he does not significantly improve next year he will probably be out of MOTOGP. I have been watching motrcyle roadracing for over 30 years and I would pick Spies any day of the week over Hayden. Nicky is an outstanding young man and is an incredibly hard worker but I think he will find more success in WSB.

 

[jetblack]

Spies will be on the Yam in 2010, so Nick will want to prove that he's the top American. Look out for some serious U.S. fireworks next season between Hayden Spies and Edwards!

He isn't even the top American right now, let alone when Spies enters the field.

 

[smashbox]

Nicky Hayden.. i'm not a fan of him usually but if he gets close to the front i root for him to do something spectacular like get on the podium.. i think he has a great personality, better than that of spies but watching spies ride is really incredible and i'd rather watch Spies over Hayden

it's definitely a tug of war when comparing these two young American riders but in the end i think Hayden will be pushed or, or just leave MotoGP allowing Spies to eventually move to the front of the pack.

 

[cookhj]

nicky is a a great rider but i think that if he doesn't do well next season he's gonna have to go to WSB, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

i have high hopes for ben though next year in GP. it's going to be balls to the wall between him, valentino, lorenzo and stoner.

 

[OldSchlPunk]

Nicky Hayden got screwed over by Repsol Honda. Even while he was on his way to win the world title Honda was re-engineering their bike to fit the lilliputian Pedrobot. Repsol was itching to see a Spanish GP champ and saw Pedrobot as the one to do it. Therefore Pedorosa became the #1 rider and Hayden was pushed out. Hayden has a lot of talent, maybe not on the level of the aliens but he's quite good. He's been making progress with the Ducati, more so than any of the other recent riders on that bike (except Stoner). The new testing restrictions have made it hard to develop a bike, if the bike isn't good from the start it could be a long time before any meaningful progress can be made. Luvio Suppo (ducati team boss) believes in making a bike his way and if you can't make it work too bad, that's why Rossi passed over Ducati to move to Yamaha. Vermulen is making the move to WSB rather than ride a Ducati. Yet Hayden is slowly moving up the order. Add to all of this rumors that Ducati is replacing Suppo and I think Hayden should have a much better season next year.

This is pretty much the way I see it also. Nicky may have had some trouble adjusting to the level of electronics on the Ducati this year versus the Honda also. Since mid year, Nicky has been pretty consistent, that is when someone isn't pile-driving him.

The day after Nicky won the championship for Honda, he arrived at Valencia for the first tests on the following year's bike to find the bike designed around his teammate. Thanks Honda.

Nicky may not be consistently as good as Rossi or Stoner, but on any given day he can ride with them. He has beaten Rossi when they both rode the Repsol. I also think he is a better rider then Pedrobot. After all, he was still consistently beating Dani while testing new parts (Pedrobot was using the tried and true...).

I hadn't seen anything on Ducati dumping Suppo, where was that reported?

 

[benroe]

I forgot about Honda screwing him. I think that was the same yr Nicky was leading in points and his teammate (pedrobot) came in underneath him, causing both of them to wreck.. This is why I still hate pedrobot!!!!!!!! (notice I won't capitalize his name....)

 

[Stick N Move]

Hes a "poser" according to Phill nfloor

 

[binx_19]

Hes a "poser" according to Phill nfloor

no that is only if shows up to bike nights with neons.

 

[jk750]

Nicky is and was a good rider relative to his competition. He was in the right place at the right time with the right equipment to win his championships, as is often the case. He isn't mentally fragile like so many other great riders - Stoner, Gibbernuts and Biaggi come to mind.

IMHO, his is not as talented as Edwards at their respective peaks, and no where near the level of Spies now. Edwards (in SBK) and Spies just had/have that little something extra held in reserve when they needed it. Rossi has always had this. Mladin, Bayliss, Foggarty, Doohan, Rainey - all great champions have this trait. To go to the well once more and retrieve a little more, and punish and demoralize their adversaries with it. I've watched Nicky race for over a decade and have seldom seen that trait in him.

 

[cookhj]

Nicky is and was a good rider relative to his competition. He was in the right place at the right time with the right equipment to win his championships, as is often the case. He isn't mentally fragile like so many other great riders - Stoner, Gibbernuts and Biaggi come to mind.

IMHO, his is not as talented as Edwards at their respective peaks, and no where near the level of Spies now. Edwards (in SBK) and Spies just had/have that little something extra held in reserve when they needed it. Rossi has always had this. Mladin, Bayliss, Foggarty, Doohan, Rainey - all great champions have this trait. To go to the well once more and retrieve a little more, and punish and demoralize their adversaries with it. I've watched Nicky race for over a decade and have seldom seen that trait in him.

well said. i don't think i've ever thought of it that way before, but it makes complete sense.

 

[Optimus Leo]

Be it as it may be, nobody wins a MotoGP world title just out of pure luck or chance.

It is a combination of many things, and is something Nicky should be proud of...not every rider can brag about winning a title in the premier bike racing class (And against Rossi nonetheless).

Also, he can claim he was the last 990 champion

The switch to 800 really hurt him, as also the development of the RC212V that was oriented towards Asimo.

 

[inpayne]

Nicky is and was a good rider relative to his competition. He was in the right place at the right time with the right equipment to win his championships, as is often the case. He isn't mentally fragile like so many other great riders - Stoner, Gibbernuts and Biaggi come to mind.

IMHO, his is not as talented as Edwards at their respective peaks, and no where near the level of Spies now. Edwards (in SBK) and Spies just had/have that little something extra held in reserve when they needed it. Rossi has always had this. Mladin, Bayliss, Foggarty, Doohan, Rainey - all great champions have this trait. To go to the well once more and retrieve a little more, and punish and demoralize their adversaries with it. I've watched Nicky race for over a decade and have seldom seen that trait in him.

In the movie "the tornado, the doctor, and the Kentucky kid" he says he always goes all out, because anything less is a waste of time. :/

 

[ZxHunteR]

Hes so dreamy

 

[Scott_0]

while he is one of the hardest workers in the MotoGP paddock (he constantly puts in more laps than most other riders) he doesnt have the talent of the top guys, he might crack the top 10 in MotoGP riders, but that debatable

 

[PhilB]

Hes a "poser" according to Phill nfloor

:rolleyes Are you going to run around this site like an angry chihuahua and snap at my ankles all the time now? Yipyipyip <kick>.

while he is one of the hardest workers in the MotoGP paddock (he constantly puts in more laps than most other riders) he doesnt have the talent of the top guys, he might crack the top 10 in MotoGP riders, but that debatable

Pretty much this. He's very talented, although doesn't have the raw talent of Rossi, Stoner, or Spies. He is a hard worker and a good development rider, given the chance. The restrictions on testing have really hurt his chances.

In the current field, there's pretty much one top group: Rossi, Stoner, Lorenzo, Pedrosa. And then there's everyone else. He's a strong contender for best of everyone else, but I don't see much chance of another MotoGP championship for him, unless something really wierd or disastrous to the lead group happens. That said, though, he's got a better handle on the Duc than anyone other than Stoner has achieved; he's popular and good with the fans, so I think Ducati will probably keep him around for a little while.

PhilB