Nicky Hayden Will Replace Dani Pedrosa at Phillip Island

American MotoGP fans, along with MotoGP fans in general, will be pleased to hear that Nicky Hayden will swing a leg over a MotoGP bike once again. Replacing the injured Dani Pedrosa, Hayden will race at Australian GP with the Repsol Honda team.

Pedrosa is expected to miss the rest of the flyaway races, after breaking his collarbone during the Japanese GP. With Hiroshi Aoyama replacing the HRC rider at Motegi, Hayden will now fill in at Phillip Island.

Fans will remember that the Kentucky Kid has already had some seat time on the 2016-spec Honda RC213V race bike, substituting for Jack Miller during the Aragon GP.

Now with more experience with the Michelin tires, we expect Hayden to improve upon his 15th place finish in Spain.

“First of all my best wishes to Dani, I’m sure he will come back stronger than ever like he always does. For me it’s crazy hard work but it’s a chance, ten year after winning my world title, to get back to my old ‘dream team’!”

“Doing a weekend in Phillip Island on a factory Honda, it’s pretty emotional for me to even think about it, and I’m very grateful for this opportunity and the trust that Honda gives me. I want also to thank my current team for allowing me to go and do this, and the sponsors.”

“Everybody worked a lot on every detail to make it possible for me, so now I’m excited to get on a plane, to get down to Phillip Island, and hopefully I can do a good job for the team.”

“Regarding Phillip Island there are two things to always consider, the weather and the tires. But, it’s a track I love and I can’t wait to ride the bike there. Let’s get started on Friday morning and go forward.”